The Toronto Maple Leafs had enough to worry about in their quest to add a free-agent forward. There’s salary cap math, roster fit, not to mention the ever-present risk of a bidding war inside the NHL.
But the latest curveball isn’t coming from Montreal, Boston or any other familiar rival. It’s coming from a league an ocean away, one that’s suddenly making its own pitch for the same player.
Rumors continue to percolate over the potential for Toronto to sign free agent Jack Roslovic. The 28-year-old center matched his career high with 22 goals for the Carolina Hurricanes last season, and speculation has grown over the past several weeks about the Maple Leafs working out a deal with the Columbus, OH, native and fill their need for a top six forward.
Maple Leafs Face New Competition as KHL Teams Pursue NHL Free Agent Jack Roslovic
Among the latest rumblings, NHL analyst Frank Seravalli reported on Tuesday’s “Insider Notebook” for Bleacher Report that Roslovic is nearing an agreement with an as-yet unnamed club.
“There seem to be some thoughts out there, some whispers that Jack Roslovic has a deal in place somewhere. They just haven’t announced it yet,” Seravalli stated.
“I’m told the Roslovic camp does not have a deal in place anywhere, but they are getting closer. Some people seem to wonder, is Toronto the fit, particularly with some of the production and goals that they lost. I could see that happening.”
But could that deal actually be coming from overseas?
According to a recent post on X (formerly Twitter), Roslovic’s free agent status has piqued the interest of several organizations in the Kontinental Hockey League, which is based primarily in Russia but also includes teams from Belarus, Kazakhstan and China. Dylan Griffing, who reports on hockey in Russia for Elite Prospects, indicated on Aug. 9 that, “Multiple KHL clubs have made bids on UFA Jack Roslovic.”
Suddenly, it appears that Toronto is not bidding against just Vancouver, Winnipeg or other NHL teams reportedly interested in adding one of the top UFAs still available as the start of training camp fast approaches. And it isn’t as if the Maple Leafs didn’t already have enough hurdles to leap in their effort to add offense in the post-Mitch Marner era.
“We know Toronto’s cap situation, and it’s still going to be tight,” Seravalli explained.
Toronto Would Need to Move Salary to Create Space for Jack Roslovic
While NHL insider Elliotte Friedman has stated that he believes Roslovic is seeking a multi-year deal worth over $3 million annually, AFP Analytics is projecting that Roslovic will ultimately sign for three years at just over $4 million per. With Toronto currently looking at just $1.9 million in cap space, initial speculation had Toronto general manager Brad Treliving attempting to trade Calle Jarnkrok and/or David Kampf in order to create the necessary room, but buzz has picked up over the past several days that Nick Robertson could be the player who eventually gets moved.
Toronto recently signed Robertson to a one-year deal at $1.825 million in order to avoid an arbitration hearing, but whispers have grown louder that the Maple Leafs are interested in shipping the 23-year-old forward out, with Chicago, Detroit and Pittsburgh mentioned as possible destinations. It’s a lot of moving parts to bring in a player like Roslovic, who some in the Toronto orbit don’t feel is worth the trouble.
“I think we need to as a fan base have some lower expectations with that one if that does come to fruition and he does sign here,” said Zack Phillips of the Leafs Nation podcast. “There’s actually probably more likelihood that it doesn’t work than that it does.”
Toronto’s Top Target Now Drawing Bids from Overseas