Toronto Maple Leafs<\/p>\n
Current Cap Hit: $94,621,472<\/a> (under the $95.5MM Upper Limit)<\/p>\n Entry-Level Contracts<\/p>\n F Easton Cowan<\/a> (three years, $873.5K)<\/p>\n After a strong junior career, Cowan made the jump directly to the NHL and has been a capable player in a limited role.\u00a0 They\u2019ll be hoping that he can move into a top-six role before too long (potentially as soon as next season) which could change his trajectory quickly. \u00a0At this point, it seems more likely that he\u2019d get a bridge deal (potentially in the $3MM to $4MM range) but if he becomes a top-six piece fairly soon and sticks, he could also wind up with a longer-term deal which could cost as much as double that amount.<\/p>\n Signed Through 2025-26, Non-Entry-Level<\/p>\n D Matt Benning<\/a> ($1.25MM, UFA) *-Philadelphia is retaining an additional $1.5MM on Laughton\u2019s contract.<\/p>\n Maccelli was brought in from Utah in the hopes that he\u2019d help replace some of the playmaking that left when Mitch Marner<\/a> went to Vegas.\u00a0 Instead, he has bounced up and down and even in and out of the lineup as a healthy scratch at times while not producing as much as they hoped for.\u00a0 Owed a $4.11MM qualifying offer with arbitration rights, he\u2019s a strong non-tender candidate unless they work out a cheaper deal closer to his current price before then.\u00a0 Laughton has seen his production tumble since joining Toronto.\u00a0 However, he\u2019s still a strong defensive player and is having a career year at the faceoff dot.\u00a0 That should be enough to earn him at least a small raise on a multi-year pact even with his offensive struggles.<\/p>\n Jarnkrok is not the impactful utility player he was earlier in his career, resulting in several healthy scratches.\u00a0 If he doesn\u2019t wind up going back overseas this summer, he\u2019s probably looking at a contract closer to the league minimum.\u00a0 Robertson has taken some strides this season, putting him on pace for a career year while having arbitration rights this summer.\u00a0 A jump to the $3MM range isn\u2019t unrealistic as a result.<\/p>\n McMann will be one of the more intriguing UFA options this summer, especially since a lot of the top players have already re-signed.\u00a0 Barring injury, he\u2019s a lock for his second straight 20-goal season and will get there despite playing time that is in the low end for a second liner and is more like a high-end third liner.\u00a0 Tripling his current price seems quite likely; a bidding war could push it into the $5MM range.<\/p>\n Benning hasn\u2019t been up with Toronto for most of the season and only gets a passing mention here because $100K is on their books as a dead cap charge while he\u2019s with the Marlies.\u00a0 Stecher, meanwhile, has been a very serviceable waiver claim from Edmonton, going from a fringe blueliner to someone logging 20 minutes a night.\u00a0 Still, given how he has bounced around and is generally viewed as more of a depth player, he probably won\u2019t get a huge boost on his next deal.\u00a0 Doubling this could be doable, however, which would be a nice outcome for someone who was on waivers just a few months ago.<\/p>\n Signed Through 2026-27<\/p>\n D Simon Benoit<\/a> ($1.35MM, UFA) *-Boston is retaining an additional $615K on Carlo\u2019s contract.<\/p>\n Roy came over from Vegas in the Marner sign-and-trade and has basically been the effective third liner he has been for most of his career.\u00a0 The price tag for those types of players has ticked up in recent years and should continue to do so in a more inflated cap environment.\u00a0 A bump to the $4MM territory could be doable while Laughton\u2019s next contract this coming summer could serve as a good indicator of where Roy\u2019s could land.<\/p>\n Toronto paid a high price to land Carlo at the trade deadline last season and it hasn\u2019t quite worked out so far.\u00a0 Never a big point producer, even his defensive game has slipped a bit.\u00a0 Even so, he\u2019ll be UFA-eligible at the age of 30 and is a big, right-shot player.\u00a0 Those elements should still land him a raise unless his play really falls off a cliff between now and then.\u00a0 A multi-year pact in the $4.5MM range might be the floor right now with a bump up from that if his performance rebounds next season.<\/p>\n Benoit has been a serviceable third-pairing player for most of his career but his limitations are well-known.\u00a0 It\u2019s plausible that he stays in this area (even a jump to $1.5MM or so wouldn\u2019t be surprising) but it seems unlikely that he\u2019d command more than that unless he suddenly becomes more of a top-four option.\u00a0 Myers was once a quality prospect in Philadelphia but has been more of a fringe player in recent years.\u00a0 He\u2019s likely to stay at the minimum salary and even securing a one-way deal isn\u2019t a guarantee at this point.<\/p>\n Signed Through 2027-28<\/p>\n F Max Domi<\/a> ($3.75MM, UFA) Domi\u2019s first season in Toronto was good enough to land him the multi-year commitment that he had been seeking for a while.\u00a0 Things haven\u2019t gone as well since then, however.\u00a0 While he\u2019s a strong playmaker, his lack of goals, a smaller stature, and a penchant for penalties could result in his market being more restricted than most again.\u00a0 Barring an improvement in his production over the next couple of years, he might have a hard time matching this price and term on his next contract.<\/p>\n Joshua was acquired over the offseason from Vancouver with the hopes that a change of scenery could get him back to his 2023-24 level.\u00a0 That hasn\u2019t exactly happened as he has played more like a fourth liner making third-line money.\u00a0 He will need to rebound considerably in the back half of the deal to have any chance of matching this on his next contract.\u00a0 Lorentz rebounded well last season after a limited 2023-24 campaign in Florida and was able to earn some stability with this deal.\u00a0 For a fourth liner who can kill penalties, this is a reasonable contract but with his limited offensive upside, he\u2019s probably not going to be able to command much more down the road.<\/p>\n Ekman-Larsson opted for stability as well back in 2024 with this deal, a four-year pact that takes him through his age-36 season.\u00a0 After a more limited role in Florida following a buyout from Vancouver, he has been deployed regularly in a top-four role and has thrived.\u00a0 Given how much he has played over the years, there could be some concern of him slowing down at the back of the contract but right now, this is definitely one of their better bargains.<\/p>\n When healthy, Woll has looked like a legitimate NHL starting goaltender.\u00a0 However, staying healthy has been a challenge in recent years which has limited his earnings upside.\u00a0 If he has a good year or two on this deal and can play 50-plus games, doubling this price tag is certainly realistic.\u00a0 However, if he continues to be in the 35-40-game range (either through injuries or being in a straight platoon), Woll might be more in the $5MM territory moving forward.<\/p>\n Signed Through 2028-29 <\/p>\n F John Tavares<\/a> ($4.389MM, UFA)<\/p>\n Tavares provided a reasonable return on one of the then-priciest deals in NHL history but now in the back stage of his career, he wasn\u2019t going to come close to $11MM on this contract.\u00a0 But the pendulum swung the other way with a price tag that is well below market value and even has deferrals (which are no longer legal moving forward).\u00a0 A second center at this price is a big bargain for Toronto and should be for a little while yet.<\/p>\n Signed Through 2029-30 Or Longer<\/p>\n F Matthew Knies<\/a> ($7.75MM through 2030-31) Nylander is in the second season of his contract, one that\u2019s definitely on the high-cost side but overall, his production continues to make him worthy of the deal.\u00a0 As the Upper Limit is set to grow quicker in the next few years, this could very well wind up checking in as a below-market pact at some point.\u00a0 Knies didn\u2019t sign for the maximum term this summer, nor did he take a bridge deal either.\u00a0 Interestingly, he signed a pact that only bought Toronto one extra year of club control while allowing him to hit the open market in his prime.\u00a0 The trade-off to that is that the contract already carries a favorable price tag for Toronto with the value only increasing from here.\u00a0 A jump past $10MM should be doable if he remains a top-line piece throughout this contract.<\/p>\n
F Calle Jarnkrok<\/a> ($2.1MM, UFA)
F Scott Laughton<\/a> ($1.5MM, RFA)*
F Matias Maccelli<\/a> ($3.425MM, RFA)
F Bobby McMann<\/a> ($1.35MM, UFA)
F Nicholas Robertson<\/a> ($1.825MM, RFA)
D Troy Stecher<\/a> ($787.5K, UFA)<\/p>\n
D Brandon Carlo<\/a> ($3.485MM, UFA)*
D Philippe Myers<\/a> ($850K, UFA)
F Nicolas Roy<\/a> ($3MM, UFA)<\/p>\n
D Oliver Ekman-Larsson<\/a> ($3.5MM, UFA)
F Dakota Joshua<\/a> ($3.25MM, UFA)
F Steven Lorentz<\/a> ($1.35MM, UFA)
F Auston Matthews<\/a> ($13.25MM, UFA)
G Joseph Woll<\/a> ($3.67MM, UFA)<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/USATSI_27554767-210x300.jpg\")
<\/a>Matthews has opted for a shorter-term contract in each of his two non-entry-level negotiations.\u00a0 The idea was that doing so set him up best for a big payday.\u00a0 It worked the first time as this deal was briefly the record-setter for AAV.\u00a0 It\u2019s hard to project that happening again, knowing some other contracts that have since been signed (and others to come) but if Matthews is open to a long-term pact this time around, a jump past the $15MM mark could be realistic, as long as his offensive drop this season isn\u2019t a sign of things to come.\u00a0 However, if he wants another shorter-term agreement, the price tag could run a little higher but still not challenge for another league record.<\/p>\n
D Jake McCabe<\/a> ($4.513MM through 2029-30)
F William Nylander<\/a> ($11.5MM through 2031-32)
D Morgan Rielly<\/a> ($7.5MM through 2029-30)
G Anthony Stolarz<\/a> ($2.5MM in 2025-26, $3.75MM from 2026-27 through 2029-30)
D Chris Tanev<\/a> ($4.5MM through 2029-30)<\/p>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/morgan-rielly-toronto-200x300.jpg\")
<\/a>Rielly\u2019s contract has bounced around a bit on the value scale over the first few years.\u00a0 At his best, he was a legitimate number one blueliner who produced more than enough offensively in that spot.\u00a0 Slotted there, this contract looked like a bargain.\u00a0 But things haven\u2019t gone as well the last couple of years.\u00a0 His production is down, as is his ice time; he\u2019s now second on the back end in ATOI.\u00a0 With some defensive miscues, the valuation of the deal starts to skew a bit in the other direction.\u00a0 Right now, it\u2019s a touch on the high side relative to the role he plays and if he stays as a number two for a while, it should hold up okay.\u00a0 But if he drops to the second pairing at some point with another drop in production, then it could be more problematic.<\/p>\n