The Toronto Maple Leafs stare at an inevitable outcome with veteran forward David Kampf. The club doesn’t have much room for him in the current lineup. They have tried to trade him, but there isn’t much of a market for a fourth-liner center with a $2.4 million cap hit.
As such, the Maple Leafs are stuck with Kampf heading into camp. As he admitted in a September 27 piece in The Athletic, Kampf won’t be on the team much longer. Despite getting a look at training camp, he doesn’t figure to make the Opening Night roster.
That situation means the Maple Leafs have only one choice with Kampf: Send him to waivers. That’s nothing new. If anything, it’s the expected outcome for the 30-year-old.
But there could be something else brewing. The Leafs, despite the talk of wanting to trade him, hope he can sneak through waivers this training camp season.
But wouldn’t that assertion sound counterintuitive? Yes and no.
On the one hand, yes, it sounds contradictory. The Maple Leafs don’t need Kampf in the lineup right now. And that’s the thing: Right now. On the other hand, Toronto might need Kampf in the lineup down the line.
That’s why Toronto, even though they’re willing to trade Kampf, doesn’t want to lose him for nothing. The team won’t mind getting something back for him. But losing him to waivers could be the sort of loss that could sting later on.
Maple Leafs Need Kampf to Clear Waivers
Odds are that Kampf clears waivers. His price tag is just too high for the role he could play. Perhaps a team desperate for center depth, like the Florida Panthers, could wait for Kampf to hit the waiver wire.
However, the Panthers, as the Stanley Cup champs, would have the last shot at claiming Kampf. That situation could mean that another team might step in and scoop him up. Be that as it may, there’s a shot someone takes Kampf’s contract off the team’s hands.
The additional cap space wouldn’t necessarily be a bad thing. But Kampf provides much-needed depth for the Leafs. If he clears, he’ll likely play with the Marlies. That scenario allows the Maple Leafs to call him up and send him back down as needed, as he would have already cleared waivers.
There’s another key element, too. Kampf could be insurance in case of injury or inconsistency.
Kampf Could Still Take on 4C Role
At the moment, Scott Laughton will be the fourth-line center. But what if Laughton struggles in that role? What if injuries befall one of the Maple Leafs’ current centers?
That’s where Kampf could still play a crucial role. He could step into the fourth line while everyone else moves up a notch. He’s sort of a fallback guy who could come through in a pinch.
Based on that presumption, the Maple Leafs hope that Kampf clears waivers. Having him hanging around the fringes gives Craig Berube something to work with in case something unexpected happens.
Sure, fans would like to see a more impactful name sitting in the depth chart. But then again, contending teams need to take all the depth help they can get. And Kampf is just that for the Maple Leafs.
Maple Leafs Hoping to Sneak Veteran Forward through Waivers