Analyst Believes Maple Leafs’ Should Extend $77 Million Forward

Getty NHL analyst expects the Maple Leafs to re-sign John Tavares.

NHL analyst Frankie Corrado believes the Toronto Maple Maple Leafs should extend John Tavares who is entering the final year of his deal.

Tavares is entering the final year of the seven-year $77 million deal he signed with his hometown Maple Leafs in 2018. With Tavares entering the final year of his deal, he became eligible to sign an extension as of July 1 but nothing has come to fruition.

However, Corrado, who is also a former NHL player, believes Toronto should look to extend their captain.

“I would, Jay, to be honest with you, I would probably try and squeeze a little bit more. Like if it means that much to you and we know that it hasn’t really worked here because the team hasn’t been able to get it done. Yeah, it’s like there’s probably going to be a different role waiting for you, and it would have to be less money. Like, I don’t know, if you just extend these guys. You know, now you’re saying we really believe this again and again and again,” Corrado said on SC with Jay Onrait.

“The contracts expiring it’s almost like your ‘Get Out of Jail Free card’ it’s like it’s over. You don’t have to make the hard decision as far as trying to get a trade done and the no-move clauses and all that kind of stuff. So, you know, that’s that’s kind of that you know, it’s a fork in the road. Where you say, are we really going to double, triple quadruple down on this? Are we going to cut our losses and say,” Corrado added.

“‘Hey, listen, thank you for everything it was awesome and we’re going to find a different route to go. Like John has been a great soldier in Toronto, a very good player. Has never done anything wrong. The only thing he’s a victim of is the fact that the group that he leads has not won. That is the only thing that John Tavares is a victim of in Toronto because he has done everything else exceptionally well,” Corrado concluded.

It is an interesting comment from Corrado, as many Leafs fans have thought they should try and trade Tavares this summer and move on from the core four.

Last year, Tavares recorded 29 goals and 34 assists for 65 points in 80 games.

Tavares Wants to Sign Extension With Maple Leafs

After Toronto was eliminated in the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs by the Boston Bruins, Tavares made it clear he wanted to remain with Toronto.

“I haven’t put much thought to it, but I mean, I love playing here,” Tavares said on May 6. “I think it’s a remarkable place to play. And, you know, when I committed here six years ago, you know, obviously I saw a tremendous amount of talent and an amazing hockey market and organization that’s fully committed to winning.”

Tavares has 184 goals and 235 assists for 419 points in 440 games over six years with the Maple Leafs.

Toronto GM Happy With Offseason Moves

The Maple Leafs were active in free agency addressing their defense as Toronto signed Chris Tanev and Oliver Ekman-Larsson to strengthen their D-core.

Although the Maple Leafs haven’t made any moves to the offense, Treliving said to the media on July 1 that he was happy with the offseason moves so far.

“We don’t play till October. Happy with what transpired today. But it’s Day One, so we’ll continue to chip away,” Treliving said. “We’ve got lots of summer left.”

Toronto will open their 2024-25 NHL season on the road on October 9 against the Montreal Canadiens.