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Mitch Marner, Toronto Maple Leafs (Mandatory Credit: John E. Sokolowski-Imagn Images)

Maple Leafs’ 2025-26 Roster Projection 1.0: Entering the Post-Marner Era

Originally posted on The Hockey Writers
By Spencer Lazary | Last updated Jun 17, 2025 9:45 AM ET

With how the Toronto Maple Leafs‘ 2024-25 season ended, they’re now heading into the post-Mitch Marner era. Unfortunately, their season came to a disappointing end when they lost yet another Game 7 to the Florida Panthers, despite a very strong regular season. They finished first in the Atlantic Division and earned home-ice advantage throughout the playoffs. Sadly, things went far off the rails, and now it looks like massive changes are coming to Toronto this summer. On top of that, there was a recent report from Andy Strickland suggesting this is the end of Marner’s time in the blue and white. Now, the Maple Leafs will need to shift their focus toward finding his replacement.

As general manager Brad Treliving said during his end-of-season press conference, the organization needs to change their DNA. Truthfully, that seems to be exactly what’s going to happen. Treliving wants this to be his team moving forward, not a continuation of the previous era. He’s going to reshape it and target players who bring a different mix. Expect him to pursue the types of players like Brad Marchand, who offer grit, scoring, leadership, and playoff experience. That’s the identity shift that’s needed—and quickly.

Using The Hockey Writers internal salary cap page as a guide, here’s a look at what some of the lines could look like at this point:

Forwards

Matthew Knies – Auston Matthews – ???
??? – ??? – William Nylander
Bobby McMann – Max Domi – Easton Cowan
??? – Scott Laughton – ???

Pending RFAs: Matthew Knies, Nicholas Robertson, Pontus Holmberg
Pending UFAs: Mitch Marner, John Tavares, Steven Lorentz, Max Pacioretty, Jani Hakanpää
On the Trading Block: Calle Jarnkrok, David Kämpf, Ryan Reaves

There are still some big questions surrounding the Maple Leafs’ offseason, including whether they could lose both Marner and Tavares in the same summer. While it looks like Tavares will likely be back, there’s a small chance he doesn’t get the offer he’s looking for and moves on. There hasn’t been much noise around the other UFAs, although there was one report suggesting Pacioretty may return. For Lorentz, it seems like a good fit, and there could be mutual interest, but so far there hasn’t been much news either way.

There are questions around the RFAs too. It looks like Robertson’s time with the organization is probably over, and it wouldn’t be surprising if they don’t qualify him. Knies is the biggest priority among the RFAs. They need to find a way to get a deal done before July 1. If rumors are true about teams preparing offer sheets, he could be a prime candidate. Holmberg is in an interesting spot. He fits what the team needs in a bottom-six forward, but could they look for someone who offers more offense at a similar price? It feels likely he’s back, but there’s no guarantee.

Looking at the trade block, if the Maple Leafs don’t go the buyout route to clear cap space, they may look to move players like Jarnkrok and Kämpf. As for Reaves, a trade seems unlikely. They’ll probably place him on waivers unless he starts the season with the team. Waiving him would help free up cap space, which Treliving will need in order to reshape this roster. If the Leafs are going to finally take a big step forward, this is the summer to get aggressive with trades and signings.

Defence

Morgan Rielly – Brandon Carlo
Jake McCabe – Chris Tanev
Oliver Ekman-Larsson – Simon Benoit

On the defensive side, for the first time in a long time, the Maple Leafs have a reliable group that can keep them in games. It seems very unlikely that Treliving will make changes to the blue line, especially since most of them are under contract for the next two years. That said, if there’s a chance to add another puck-moving defenseman to help on the power play, they could explore that. If someone like Aaron Ekblad hits the market, it wouldn’t be shocking to see them show interest. But overall, this defense group fits the style Treliving is aiming for.

Goaltending

Just like the defense, the goalie tandem of Anthony Stolarz and Joseph Woll will return next season. The only difference is Woll’s new contract kicks in, raising his cap hit from $766,667 to $3.6 million. Regardless, this duo was one of the NHL’s best last season, and they’ll be counted on again. The Maple Leafs are hoping they can deliver the same kind of consistent goaltending that gave them a chance every night.

Maple Leafs Entering the Post-Marner Era

The NHL is a business, and the Maple Leafs are about to feel that reality by losing Marner for nothing in free agency. When that happens, the roster is going to look drastically different. It’ll play differently, too. Matthews will be without Marner for the first time in his NHL career. That opens the door for someone like Cowan to step up and fill the void, or they’ll have to look into the free agency market. Either way, this will be the biggest test of Treliving’s tenure so far. Leafs Nation has no choice but to trust that he and his front office can make the right moves. All we can do is hope that he can do it and that this team doesn’t need to take a huge step backwards.