Another New-Look 2010 Maple Leafs

After that last entry, I'm going to have a hard time following that one up. But here goes.

Goaltenders:

Vesa Toskala- 4.0M against the cap. Quite honestly, I'm expecting a rebound year of sorts for our - er - beloved ToskaLOL. After a horrendous season last year, and a new contract to be negotiated at the end of this season, he needs to step up.

Jonas Gustavsson - 1.5M against the cap. He's a rookie, backup. Having seen his options for cities, really, we are the only good option for him. Nabokov is the goalie in San Jose, and Turco is the goalie in Dallas. In Toronto, he's got an opportunity to come into camp and compete for an NHL starting job - something he can't do in any other city he's considering. Toronto gets his signature - the number I seem to remember is 1.5, so that's what I'm going with.

Defense:

Pairing 1

Jay Bouwmeester- 6.25M against the cap. Solid, puck moving defenseman free agent, defensive up-side is an ideal replacement for Tomas Kaberle(solid, puck moving defenseman with a smaller contract and not-great defensive numbers), signed via free agency. Salary chosen to be on par with Pronger.

Our Luke and Saviour - 1.25M against the cap. Our future captain, and if he partners well with J-Bo on the first line pairing, he can run for godhead if he wants. Should compliment Bouwmeester in the same way he would compliment Kabby - except he'll be left alone in his own end slightly less often.

Pairing 2

Mike van Ryn - 3.35M against the cap. Good offensive defenseman - when he isn't hurt. Hopefully, he comes back, gives us a full season of what he did last year when healthy, and he'll be a great boost to our second defense pairing/second power play.

Jeff Finger - 3.5M against the cap. To reiterate a previous post - while we probably over-paid him to come to Toronto, we also didn't really notice him last season. While he finished the season -7, he didn't really commit any glaring errors and provided good defense when called upon. At this stage, I'll take that.

Pairing 3

Ian White - 0.95M against the cap. Power of the mustache - at a very reasonable price. Enough Said.

Jonas Frogren- 0.9M against the cap. The second half of our budget-defense pairing, Frogren provided good defense in his time with the club, being an even 0 on one of the worst defensive teams in the NHL.  For under a million for the season, I'll take that. 

Seventh D-man: Anton Stralman 0.665M against the cap

Forwards:

Line 1:

Brayden Schenn - 1.15M against the cap. Leafs trade their first and Kaberle to the Kingsfor their '09 first, their '10 first, their '10 second, and a couple of mid-level prospects. We take Schenn Jr. with the number 5 pick.

Mike Cammalleri - 5.5M against the cap. Another free agent signing from Calgary. Immediate top-six offensive punch, and will work well on the Leaf's top line.

Jason Blake - 4.0M against the cap. Only here because we can't actually get rid of him - and he was just useful enough last year to avoid getting bought out.

Line 2:

ManGrabsLemon makes a stunning comeback - Grabbo re-signs for 3.25M, with a grand total of 8M for the second line.

Line 3: Alexei Ponikarovsky, Matt Stajan, Jiri Tlusty(3.8 for the line) - I'd originally put Victor Stahlburg here instead of Poni, but the more I thought about it, the more I'd like to give Poni one more year and see where he goes. He's been a consistant 60 point threat throughout his career, he's developed at least some chemistry with Stajan last year, and I think both vetrans could help Tlusty develop into (hopefully) a solid forward in the NHL this year.

Line 4: Christian Hanson, Lee Stempniak, Brad May (4.5M for the line). We re-sign May for 0.45M, pray that Stempniak has a rebound season, and give Christian Hanson a chance. This is not my ideal fourth line, but it's the best we can reasonably do with what's readily available.

13th forward: Tyler Bozak. I have no idea where the 4.0M number comes from, so I'm thinking 1.5M for the rookie. I don't entirely know what to do with him, but I'd like to give him some serious playing time through all four lines

Add another 1.75M for the Raycrap and Tucker buyouts, and you're left with (roughly) 51-52M in used cap space. Here's what's happening with the rest.

Kubina and Kaberle are both good players, and have served the Blue and White well. Kaberle, however, was moved to Los Angeles as part of the deal required to move up to draft Brayden Schenn

Kubina was traded to Minnesota for their 2010 first, and a couple of prospects to be added to the Leaf's system. Nobody that will be making the jump to the main club this year though.

Mayers will spend the season toiling in the AHL, where he will be grabbed on waivers by someone other than Toronto.

Kolzig, Gerber, Devereaux, etc will be released. Joseph will announce his retirement as a player, and will, hopefully, be signed on as an assistant to our new goalie coach.

Ryan Hollweg's address will be made public in the city of Toronto, and he will be lynched by a mob of angry fans.

Mats Sundin will sign a one-day deal with the Maple Leafs and subsequentially announce his retirement from the NHL.