The Leafs have been somewhat active in Free Agency this year. We’re now long removed from ex-GM’s Brian Burke’s days of essentially boycotting the start of Free Agency with his famous line “it’s the worst time to make deals in hockey.” Of course, we are also now far removed from his days of the salary cap rising 7-10% each year, which provided cover for the many mistakes he made doing business outside of that period.
However, outside of T.J. Brodie, Kyle Dubas has mostly stuck to signing depth players, Joe Thornton being the newest and biggest—in the literal sense, but not in the financial sense as he signed yesterday at the league minimum salary.
Related
Joe Thornton signs with the Maple Leafs
Are there more to come? There could still be trades made to clear the logjam of defenceman, and that would open a comfortable amount of cap space to sign a new player, but the pickings from the Free Agent lists are now slim. Who is still out there that the Leafs would or could sign, even with, say, a trade of a defenceman like Justin Holl?
Maybe some out of the box thinking is in order.
Okay hear me out: Nail Yakupov for 4C.
— Katya Knappe (@KatyaKnappe) October 17, 2020
Other News
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Shut Up and Dribble: NHL player safety still not a priority - The Link
According to a study done by Global News in 2014, NHL owners pay upwards of $218 million in player injury costs on a yearly basis—this includes physiotherapy, surgeries, and various rehabilitation measures. These costs would only increase as the rate of injury rises, which makes the 82 game format for 2020-2021 even less feasible financially.
Coyotes goaltending director part of growing trend in NHL - NHL.com
Brian Daccord helped pioneer one expansion of goalie-related jobs in the NHL. He hopes to do it again now as the Arizona Coyotes director of goaltending operations. Daccord begins the position five years after he was hired by the Leafs as the first full-time goaltending scout in the NHL.
Los Angeles Kings sign Quinton Byfield to entry-level contract - Jewels From The Crown
The second-overall pick makes it official.
[PODCAST] Toronto Maple Leaf TV Voice Chris Cuthbert #inthepressrow – Toronto Sports Media Blog
Chris and Jonah discuss his roots, calling a game remotely when the power went out in Montreal, his preparation for Sidney Crosby’s Olympic Gold Winning Goal, and this transition back to Hockey Night in Canada covering the Maple Leafs.
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