May 5, 2025; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Toronto Maple Leafs forward Matthew Knies (23) reacts after his goal against Florida Panthers goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky (72) during the third period of game one of the second round of the 2025 Stanley Cup Playoffs at Scotiabank Arena. Mandatory Credit: John E. Sokolowski-Imagn Images [https://deweb-519a7.b-cdn.net/post-images/8eb08fd5-c08b-4e8c-8d55-9d514bd606ad.jpeg] May 5, 2025; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Toronto Maple Leafs forward Matthew Knies (23) reacts after his goal against Florida Panthers goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky (72) during the third period of game one of the second round of the 2025 Stanley Cup Playoffs at Scotiabank Arena. Mandatory Credit: John E. Sokolowski-Imagn Images The calendar will soon flip to June and for the Toronto Maple Leafs, their focus will be on roster construction for the 2025-26 NHL season. Unlike in past years, it looks like Toronto's core could be shaken up with speculation surrounding star forward Mitch Marner, a pending unrestricted free agent who is likely to test the market. With that established, let's look at what the Leafs have right now, with the help of puckpedia.com [https://puckpedia.com/team/toronto-maple-leafs] The projected NHL salary cap limit for 2025-26 is $95.5 million. The Leafs currently have a projected cap hit of approximately $69.79 million, leaving them with about $25.71 million in projected cap space. The calculation is based on 17 players under contract (including Ryan Reaves who didn't finish the regular season with the club and was instead with the Toronto Marlies). The calculation also notes a $626,230 overage in performances bonuses that were paid out to Max Pacioretty. The cap hit also includes an expected $100,000 burial hit for defenseman Matt Benning, who spent virtually all of his time with the Toronto Marlies after he was acquired in the deal that sent Timothy Liljegren to the San Jose Sharks. Leafs salary cap situation, courtesy PuckPedia.com [https://deweb-519a7.b-cdn.net/post-images/5c414853-a9bf-44c0-aef8-187aecdf55eb.png] Leafs salary cap situation, courtesy PuckPedia.com Some things to note. The Leafs are permitted to go 10 percent above the salary cap during the offseason. That number is $105,050,000 in the event they need to protect from an offer sheet, but I doubt that becomes an issue this season. They need to get that number down to $95,500,000 or less by the day before the start of the regular season. The good new for Toronto is their defense and their goaltending is essentially set. We can debate if the Leafs need to fundamentally change what they have, but the same six healthy defenseman they rolled with during the playoffs are locked in for the upcoming season. Maple Leafs defensemen under contract * Morgan Rielly (LD, age 31): $7,500,000. A long-term commitment extending through 2029-30. * Jake McCabe (LD, age 31): $4,513,102, signed through 2029-30. * Christopher Tanev (RD, age 35): $4,500,000, signed through 2029-30. * Oliver Ekman-Larsson (LD, age 33): $3,500,000, becomes a UFA after the 2027-28 season. * Brandon Carlo (RD, age 28): $3,485,000, becomes a UFA after the 2026-27 season. The depth defensemen include: * Simon Benoit (LD, age 26): $1,350,000. * Philippe Myers (RD, age 28): $850,000. The same goes for Toronto's goaltending. They have an established duo in Anthony Stolarz and Joseph Woll. Of note, Woll's cap hit sees a massive jump to $3.667 million as his new three-year deal kicks in. Maple Leafs goaltending under contract * Joseph Woll (age 26): $3,666,667. * Anthony Stolarz (age 31): $2,500,000. Everything for the Maple Leafs this season comes down to their forwards and the mix they have. After Auston Matthews and William Nylander, the drop-off is significant. David Kampf struggled to get any playoff playing time during the 2025 Stanley Cup Playoffs and Calle Jarnkrok struggled to stay healthy this season. Maple Leafs forwards under contract * Auston Matthews (C, age 27): $13,250,000. His contract extends through the 2027-28 season. * William Nylander (C,RW, age 29): $11,500,000. His contract represents a long-term commitment, extending through the 2031-32 season. Beyond these two foundational players, the forward group includes: * Max Domi (C,LW, age 30): $3,750,000, signed through 2027-28. * David Kampf (C,LW, age 30): $2,400,000, signed through 2026-27. * Calle Jarnkrok (LW,RW, age 33): $2,100,000, becomes an Unrestricted Free Agent (UFA) after the 2025-26 season. * Scott Laughton (C,LW, age 30): $1,500,000, becomes a UFA after the 2025-26 season. * Ryan Reaves (RW, age 38): $1,350,000, becomes a UFA after the 2025-26 season. * Bobby McMann (LW, age 28): $1,350,000, becomes a UFA after the 2025-26 season. Who stays and who goes? There's a long laundry list of forwards that the Leafs will have to assess, and that starts with Marner. Coming off his first 100+ point season, the forward is sure to attract some lucrative offers if he hits the market. But the Leafs should try to find out if Marner is indeed testing the market. If that is the case, simply don't use his potential cap hit in any equation. Then of course, there is John Tavares. The veteran center has expressed his desire to stay. There are not a whole lot of attractive center options on the open market. If they can get the salary cap hit reasonably low, that would help in figuring out what kind of money the Leafs will want to hand out to 22-year-old restricted free agent Matthew Knies. With 29 goals and 29 assists in 78 games, that number is expected to be big. Leafs free agents heading into the summary, data courtesy of puckpedia.com. [https://deweb-519a7.b-cdn.net/post-images/ce3b3957-2f99-4a70-9f68-04b39db3e748.png] Leafs free agents heading into the summary, data courtesy of puckpedia.com. Max Pacioretty proved to be a solid addition for the postseason. The 36-year-old said he needs to talk with his family before deciding if he wants to come back for another NHL season. That doesn't necessarily mean Toronto will be the destination. But if Pacioretty does come back, it will decidedly be somewhere he thinks he can win. Steven Lorentz bleeds blue and white and fit as a depth add for Toronto. After re-establishing himself as an everyday NHL player on a good team, there is sure to be interest from other clubs. It's going to come down to money and the desire for the player to stay and where those two meet. Jani Hakanpaa played two games for the Leafs and the defenseman had the most bizarre tenure in Toronto. It appears as though that chapter is closed. Pontus Holmberg and Nick Robertson will be interesting. Both players are arbitration-eligible restricted free agents. After Robertson requested a trade in the offseason before he ended up stating, he was a healthy scratch for three of Toronto's 13 playoff games. Pontus Holmberg is due a substantial raise from his $800,000 cap hit and become a player Berube trusts. How much will be too much. If Marner goes elsewhere, Knies and Tavares combine for a number that would be a little over the previous season, throw in some money for others, and the Leafs could use some of that extra cash to make a big splash. Sam Bennett is the obvious big one. Toronto could use someone like him, but do they want to overpay and does the player actually want to leave Florida. Brad Marchand would be an excellent player for Toronto. If not for his talent, but just to have his mind games benefit the franchise instead of hurt it. There's a lot of different ways this season could go. But it all starts with knowing for certain whether or not Marner is coming back.
