With two trades for players, one on LTIR now, and one not, the Leafs roster is growing.
This is the current active roster, plus the two LTIR players and their cap hits. This is 15 forwards, seven defenders and three goalies. Or 14 F, 7D and 2G when you just count the healthy players.
Maple Leafs Roster after the Foligno trade
| Player | Cap Hit on the Leafs |
|---|---|
| Auston Matthews | 11,640,250 |
| John Tavares | 11,000,000 |
| Mitch Marner | 10,903,000 |
| William Nylander | 6,962,366 |
| Alex Kerfoot | 3,500,000 |
| Riley Nash | 2,750,000 |
| Zach Hyman | 2,250,000 |
| Ilya Mikheyev | 1,645,000 |
| Wayne Simmonds | 1,500,000 |
| Nick Foligno | 1,375,000 |
| Pierre Engvall | 1,250,000 |
| Alex Galchenyuk | 1,050,000 |
| Alex Barabanov | 925,000 |
| Joe Thornton | 700,000 |
| Jason Spezza | 700,000 |
| Jake Muzzin | 5,625,000 |
| Morgan Rielly | 5,000,000 |
| T.J. Brodie | 5,000,000 |
| Justin Holl | 2,000,000 |
| Zach Bogosian | 1,000,000 |
| Travis Dermott | 874,125 |
| Martin Marincin | 700,000 |
| Frederik Andersen | 5,000,000 |
| Jack Campbell | 1,650,000 |
| Micheal Hutchinson | 725,000 |
Right now, as reported in the trade post, all these players fit under the cap and/or in the LTIR pool. There is $2.7 million of that pool remaining with this roster as constructed, so it’s not necessary to cut anyone, and it is possible to add players without making any other moves.
Of that list, Alex Barabanov is the only waivers exempt player. Michael Hutchinson would clear waivers in all liklihood, but the Leafs cannot risk that right now. They also have Martin Marincin who would clear. Other than that, there is no one to cut who wouldn’t be claimed, with the exception of running that Jason Spezza trick again, where he announces he’ll retire if claimed.
Clarification: players do get claimed after the deadline, but the risk is lowered since they aren’t playoff eligible. So it’s a little easier to do, but low ranked teams sometimes just need bodies, so caution is an issue, and no one with term beyond this season could be moved.
What this means is that the Leafs would have to clear salary to reactivate Andersen. And they would have to clear salary to add much more than $3.5 million in new player cap hits.
However, this group as constructed, most of whom are in Montreal ready to play on Monday, fits fine for now. Before that game against the Canadiens begins, we’ll know exactly who is available for the rest of the season and if even more new Leafs have been added.