It is safe to say that the Toronto Maple Leafs have improved their roster situation heading into the 2026-27 NHL season compared with last season.
The addition of top overall prospect Gavin McKenna is more than enough reason to be excited about what could be a redemption season for the Toronto franchise.
However, roster management is also more complex, and several factors must be considered to maintain a healthy salary cap that provides room to maneuver if the team needs to make moves in the future or deal with unexpected situations.
Recently, Daily Faceoff ranked every NHL team based on its salary cap situation and placed the Maple Leafs 24th.
Maple Leafs Get Honest Salary Cap Verdict From Daily Faceoff
Daily Faceoff’s Scott Maxwell explained that the Leafs’ ranking is due to several different factors. One of them is that Brad Treliving, the franchise’s former general manager, did not leave his successor, John Chayka, with the best situation to work with.
Maxwell pointed out that while all the players Treliving signed are under contract for around their market value, that also means Toronto isn’t saving money in some areas to improve others.
He wrote, “Brad Treliving did not leave John Chayka with the greatest situation to work with. (…) Every player is signed to around their market value, which isn’t the worst situation, but it also means Toronto isn’t saving in some areas to improve in others.”
Maxwell also explained that, in any case, Chayka did not do himself any favors, but at least he was smart enough not to give them term, which was an issue with the trades in Treliving’s days. Some of the players Maxwell identified as the Leafs’ worst contracts include Teddy Blueger, Sergei Bobrovsky, Brandon Duhaime and Colton Sissons.
“However, Chayka didn’t do himself any favors this summer. In fact, some of the worst contracts on the Leafs’ books are to players Chayka signed in July (Teddy Blueger, Sergei Bobrovsky, Brandon Duhaime, Colton Sissons). He was at least smart enough not to give them term (another problem of Treliving’s), which allowed Toronto’s core group to only include higher-end players.”
He added, “But Chayka also gave four of his seven UFA signings no-trade clauses, which, along with acquiring Nick Paul, gives the Leafs the most clauses in the league. Chayka also made the Leafs one of three teams above the cap, and the Leafs aren’t close to that level with their current roster. With Auston Matthews’ contract up in two years, and the pressure to impress him sky-high, it’s hard to be confident with the group Chayka put together this season, even if it is a significant improvement from last year’s.”
Maple Leafs Handed Blunt Salary Cap Assessment Before Season