Toronto Maple Leafs: Next steps after John Tavares re-signing

Is it a good deal for the Leafs?

There was an expectation that Tavares and the Leafs would reach an agreement. For the Leafs, this is a big deal, as losing Tavares would be a huge blow to their centre depth. Given that the few centre options on the free agent market had already started to dwindle, it was becoming obvious that any hopes of upgrading the centre group involved, in part, a Tavares return.

The Leafs are expected to make more moves to shore up the team in the days and weeks ahead. After scoring 38 goals and 74 points last season, Tavares should still have a few good seasons left in the tank. With the salary cap on the rise, this deal affords the Leafs a lot of cap flexibility going forward. For many, this looks to be a great value for the Leafs, reinforced by the Tavares contract costing less against the cap than the Dallas Stars recently signed Matt Duchene to.

There may be some concerns about how Tavares’ play holds up over the term of the contract, but the Leafs have been unafraid to give longer-term deals to veteran players under GM Brad Treliving. Defenceman Chris Tanev is a prime example of that. Without a first-round pick for the next three drafts, the Leafs have already committed themselves to maximizing the present.

While the core four era of the Leafs appears to be nearing an end, Tavares has been increasingly graceful in his efforts to help the team. Having already abdicated his captaincy, Tavares now takes a discount deal to stay with the team. To this extent, the Leafs’ offering a full NMC over the first two years of the deal is not a surprise. Fans should be more generous with assessments of Tavares’ play under this evolving context.

Next steps

The Leafs should be expected to continue exploring additions to their forward group and target the centre position in particular. Tavares joins Auston Matthews as the team’s only true top-nine centres. Max Domi, Scott Laughton, and David Kampf remain options, while none are truly enough to push Tavares for icetime. As much remains true when considering Calle Jarnkrok as a centre or counting unsigned RFA Pontus Holmberg. As much as a centre to compete with Tavares might still be the goal, players of such quality will be hard to come by.

Still, as the offseason has started to ramp into high gear, there will be a lot of moving and shaking from all of the NHL’s 32 teams. Famously, GM Treliving is keeping an ear to the ground, involved in discussions around the league. Undoubtedly, efforts to revamp the forward group will continue, and a lot of changes will be made this week at the draft and into the opening days of free agency.