Report: Leafs close to a deal with RFA Kasperi Kapanen

If there’s one name that’s been in every single Maple Leafs trade rumour since the second he was acquired in the Phil Kessel trade, it’s Kasperi Kapanen. Now there is a report that the Leafs are about to sign Kapanen to an extension.

It sounds like Kasperi Kapanen and the #leafs are getting closer on an extension.

— Chris Johnston (@reporterchris) June 21, 2019

Kapanen is finishing the last year of his ELC, a deal he signed in 2014 with the Pittsburgh Penguins, who drafted him 22nd overall that year.  He was traded to the Leafs on July 1, 2015.

Unlike Andreas Johnsson, Kapanen is not yet arbitration eligible; he would be after next season, so a deal that buys more than one year of his arbitration years would be ideal. The most likely term is three years, and the most likely AAV is somewhere around $3 million.

We’ll see where this goes, but this sounds like solid intelligence from Johnston. We’ll update the second we have confirmation.

TOR, more or less, has an agreement in place with Kasperi Kapanen on an extension. Not expected to be formalized until TOR cap (Marner) situation clarified. It will be a 3 year deal with an AAV in the $3.2M to $3.4M range.

— Bob McKenzie (@TSNBobMcKenzie) June 22, 2019