
The Toronto Maple Leafs have placed prospect Ty Voit on unconditional waivers for contract termination.
Voit, who was entering the third year of his entry-level contract signed in Dec. 2021, will become an unrestricted free agent on Wednesday once he clears waivers. According to The Hockey News' David Alter, both Voit and the team mutually agreed it was best for both sides that they part ways.
The Maple Leafs—with former GM Kyle Dubas at the helm—selected the Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania-born forward in the fifth round (153rd overall) of the 2021 NHL Draft. Since being drafted, Voit has only appeared in one AHL game with the Toronto Marlies due to numerous injuries.
Voit suffered a shoulder injury at the Traverse City Prospects Tournament in September 2023, which kept him out until mid-December of that year. After a brief stint with the ECHL's Newfoundland Growlers, Voit made his Marlies debut on Dec. 20 and suffered another shoulder injury.
This time, however, he needed surgery, and that ended his first professional season in 2023-24.
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Voit returned to full health and played the entirety of last season with the Cincinnati Cyclones, the Maple Leafs' ECHL affiliate. The 22-year-old scored eight goals and 29 assists in 63 games with the club.
There are likely various reasons why both sides decided to part ways. After numerous injuries and not very many opportunities at the AHL level, Voit probably wants to enter an organization with a clean slate. From the Maple Leafs' perspective, Voit's small 5-foot-10 frame likely didn't fit the mould of a future forward with their NHL club.
Voit had a standout final season in the OHL with the Sarnia Sting, where he scored 105 points (24 goals and 81 assists) in 67 games. He had the second-most points and the most assists among OHLers that season.
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With Voit being from the Pittsburgh area, I wonder if Dubas—now the Penguins' president and GM—will look to bring in the right-shot forward to develop in their organization.
(Top photo of Voit: Nick Barden / The Hockey News Toronto)