The Toronto Maple Leafs are $2.75 million over the salary cap. Here are some simple ways to fix that going into the 2026-27 NHL season.
The Toronto Maple Leafs have been very active this off-season after missing the Stanley Cup playoffs for the first time in 10 years.
They've made multiple trades and several signings in free agency, reshaping the roster to some degree. With all those moves, they ate all of the salary cap space that they had when they ended the regular season. In fact, Toronto ate a little too much.
The Maple Leafs are now $2.75 million over the salary cap, according to Puckpedia. They are just one of two teams that are currently over the cap, with the Vegas Golden Knights the other team and $8.61 million over the ceiling.
For Toronto, it's not a back-breaking overage and should be very simple to become compliant with the NHL's salary cap ahead of next season. Here are a few different ways in which the Maple Leafs can achieve that.
Max Domi To LTIR
After undergoing back surgery in late May to address an issue that he played through in 2025-26, Max Domi has been labelled as out indefinitely by the Maple Leafs. Further to that, the 31-year-old is to be re-evaluated at the start of training camp in September. In other words, this is a severe injury for Domi and will take some time to recover.
Also, with all the moves that Leafs GM John Chayka has made, particularly in bringing in middle-six forwards of a similar role to Domi, in some ways it seems like the organization is prepared in case Domi's recovery isn't a quick one.
Nonetheless, Domi's salary cap hit is $3.75 million per season, with two years remaining on his contract. If he and his contract are put on LTIR, the Maple Leafs would then be safe and allowed to exceed the cap by the amount they're currently at.
Roster Transactions
There's still plenty of time before the Maple Leafs need to worry about becoming cap-compliant. In fact, it won't even be an issue until about three months from now.
Near the beginning of the 2026-27 season and around the end of the pre-season, each team's roster will experience a lot of shuffling. Players get sent down and waived each year, and that will be no different with the Maple Leafs.
Currently, Toronto matches the maximum 23-man roster, but there are several different circumstances that can come into play leading up to the new season, and injuries are certainly an aspect of that.
Another Trade?
It wasn't long ago when Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman reported that the Maple Leafs were "hopeful to add another difference-maker." With that report, it could very well mean that we haven't seen the last of Chayka making notable moves this off-season.
Of course, without knowing the logistics of what a hypothetical move would entail, the aftermath of that trade could see the Maple Leafs back under the salary cap ceiling.
Do Nothing
Sometimes, a salary cap situation could just solve itself. As mentioned, injuries are a part of the game, and with the speed and physicality of the NHL, anything can happen.
This past year, Aleksander Barkov missed the entire season because of an injury in training camp. Therefore, in the lead-up to the season, including training camp and pre-season, the circumstances of the Maple Leafs' roster can change in the blink of an eye.
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