Canucks Analyst Urges Bold Offer Sheet Move on Maple Leafs Rising Star

As a restricted free agent this summer, Knies is in a good position to garner interest from teams that will attempt to pry him from the Maple Leafs, if those teams are willing to take the gamble on an offer sheet.

Offer sheets are rare and costly. Beyond the potential salary commitment, teams must pay for legal fees and recruiting attempts, like flying the player and his family in.

And then, after all of that, the original team ends up matching the offer, nullifying the effort entirely. That has not ended speculation, though.

Some very surprising tweets came from Canucks analyst Dave Hall , who tweeted that he can't wait for the Vancouver Canucks to prepare and make an offer sheet for Knies.

Knies will be in high demand this summer around the league

That's an aggressive statement, and one which indicates just how in demand Knies has become, and how aggressive some teams are willing to get, possibly even the Canucks this summer.

For Toronto, it could come down to making a tough choice between retaining Mitch Marner, a soon-to-be UFA, or matching a big offer for Knies. Letting Knies walk would give the Leafs up to three first-rounders as compensation.

Losing Marner, however, would give them absolutely nothing if he signs elsewhere. Toronto may be forced to decide which star to retain, and sooner rather than later.

Is Knies a better long-term piece than Marner? We'll get our answer this summer based on what the Leafs choose to do.