The Toronto Maple Leafs have been one of the most active teams this NHL off-season on the forward front, specifically on July 1, when the league's free agency period became live.

Leafs GM John Chayka signed five forwards and acquired another one in a trade, all on the same day. With the club looking to leave the disappointing 2025-26 campaign in the past, basically half of the team's forward group has been revamped.

Toronto looks to turn the page from this past year and get back to the post-season after missing the dance for the first time in a decade.

Of course, that won't be an easy task in the Atlantic Division, where every team is looking to be a playoff team. But in a division with eight teams, only a maximum of five can qualify. 

On the topic of forwards, where do the Maple Leafs rank in that department on paper among their divisional peers?

From the beginning of the 2025-26 season to now, the Maple Leafs' forward group has seen an overhaul to some degree. 

Some of that change began when Brad Treliving was still running the operation as GM. At the trade deadline from this past year, Toronto moved three solid NHL roster forwards in exchange for future assets. They traded away centers Nicolas Roy and Scott Laughton, as well as left winger Bobby McMann.

It's also worth mentioning that David Kampf moved on from the Leafs after not earning any ice time with the team this past year. He joined the Vancouver Canucks in November as a free agent following his contract termination with Toronto.

At the end of this past season, the Maple Leafs parted ways with a couple of more forwards, including left wingers Matias Maccelli and Nick Robertson, as well as right winger Calle Jarnkrok.

This summer, Maccelli was an RFA. However, with Toronto deciding not to give the Finn a qualifying offer, he became a UFA. The New York Islanders went on to sign him to a one-year contract at $2.25 million.

Robertson was Chayka's first piece of business when the calendar flipped to July. He was traded to the Pittsburgh Penguins for a 2028 fourth-round pick, reuniting with Kyle Dubas, the former GM of the Leafs who drafted Robertson 53rd overall in 2019.

For Jarnkrok, after some years of mediocrity and lacking influence on the ice, he remains a UFA as the four-year contract that he signed with Toronto in July 2022 has expired. All signs point to the 34-year-old turning to a new chapter of his hockey career outside of Toronto.

The forwards joining the roster for next season include Jack Roslovic, Colton Sissons, Teddy Blueger, Brandon Duhaime, Nick Paul and Zack MacEwen. 

Of those six names, Paul was the only player who was acquired through a trade. The Maple Leafs received the 31-year-old from the Tampa Bay Lightning in exchange for goaltender Dennis Hildeby, a 2027 fourth-round pick and a 2028 third-round pick.

Sissons was the biggest signing in terms of the money he received on his new deal. The 32-year-old got a two-year contract at $4.25 million per year. In fact, Roslovic, Blueger and MacEwen all got two-year contracts.

Roslovic, who comes right after Sissons on the Leafs' payroll, earns $4 million against the salary cap, Blueger will get $2.5 million per season, and MacEwen is the lowest-paid player on the roster at $875,000.

Duhaime was the only forward that the Maple Leafs signed to get more than a two-year contract, getting a three-year deal with a $2.6-million cap hit.

And even though he isn't a UFA signing or off-season trade, Toronto still made a key addition by drafting Gavin McKenna with the first overall pick in the 2026 NHL draft. He's a player who could instantly be given an opportunity in the Leafs' top six.

It's no secret that, to some extent, the Maple Leafs will go as far as captain Auston Matthews can take them. He hasn't been the same player in the past two seasons, but as he turns 29 for next season, he's still very much in the prime of his NHL career and capable of scoring at high rates again, especially with a new coaching staff behind the bench.

Nonetheless, the Leafs' forward group is capable of being a juggernaut in this league, and it will need to be in order to separate itself from the rest of the Atlantic.

On paper, the Maple Leafs' attack is certainly better than the Detroit Red Wings'. Toronto can match up player for player with Detroit, and the Wings might even lose their captain, Dylan Larkin, after his trade request earlier this summer.

Another team that the Leafs probably have the edge over up front is the Boston Bruins. Indeed, they brought in JJ Peterka, but he is counting on a bounce-back season after a dip in offensive production and no points in six playoff games with the Utah Mammoth.

In terms of center depth, Matthews and John Tavares on the top two lines overshadow Boston's Pavel Zacha and Elias Lindholm duo. And even superstar right winger David Pastrnak isn't far from William Nylander.

Looking at provincial rivals, the Ottawa Senators, they should perform better than they do. On paper, several individuals can turn the game around, including Tim Stutzle, Drake Batherson, Dylan Cozens, Shane Pinto, and now William Eklund.

However, the loss of Brady Tkachuk sets the team back slightly, a team that couldn't earn a lead against the Carolina Hurricanes in the first round of the Stanley Cup playoffs this past year.

The Maple Leafs don't dismantle the Senators in an on-paper comparison, but there are arguments to be made that Toronto can be given the edge. 

Another team that the Leafs could earn the decision over is the Buffalo Sabres, but it's close, especially after clinching the Atlantic Division this past season. But again, on paper, why can't Toronto have the edge over Buffalo?

In terms of the Sabres' top-end talent, Tage Thompson stands alone as a true star player on the team. With Alex Tuch with the Washington Capitals, it's not hard for the Leafs' roster to match what the Sabres have now.

Moving on to the Montreal Canadiens, Toronto is not far from meeting their quality, but isn't quite there.

While any team will have circumstances that depend on how certain players perform next year, Montreal has very strong depth. Even without a true second-line center, Jake Evans and Phillip Danualt behind Nick Suzuki has its perks, and it's rare to find mistakes in their game.

Cole Caufield is now a 50-goal scorer, Juraj Slafkovsky is emerging as a star power forward who scored 73 points in 2025-26. Not to mention Suzuki, the reigning Selke Trophy winner, with likely more to come later in his career.

There's a world where Toronto outperforms Montreal's forward group next season, but on paper, with the depth, young talent, and performance from the past year, the Habs get a slight lead.

The teams from the Sunshine State remain, with Toronto not coming close to what the Florida Panthers have to offer next year. With the addition of Brady Tkachuk, alongside a healthy Matthew Tkachuk and Aleksander Barkov, that team is ready to contend for a Stanley Cup again.

As for the Lightning, it's a much more realistic comparison.

The Leafs' bottom six gives a real fight, but the Bolts' top six, which includes Nikita Kucherov, Jake Guentzel, Brayden Point, Brandon Hagel and Anthony Cirelli, is hard to beat.

It isn't egregious to say Toronto has the better forward group, and anything can happen during a season. But on paper, going into next year, Tampa look to be in a decent place, even with the loss of Oliver Bjorkstrand, Paul, and some other minor departures.

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