The Toronto Maple Leafs’ ongoing contract termination saga with disgruntled forward David Kampf could come to an end sooner than expected.
Kampf, whom the Maple Leafs have been trying to trade for quite some time, landed in the AHL after failing to make the team in training camp.
Reports emerged this week that the club had suspended the 30-year-old for failing to report to the AHL Marlies. The news came on the heels of reports indicating Kampf wanted to step away from the Maple Leafs to ponder his future.
Now, the Fourth Period’s David Pagnotta has floated the idea that this saga could come to a head as soon as this weekend. Pagnotta spoke on the November 7 edition of Daily Faceoff Live, floating the idea that the Maple Leafs will make one last attempt to trade Kampf before terminating his contract.
Pagnotta stated:
“Treliving has been looking around for a while. The sense that I’ve gotten is that he hasn’t really wanted to just give these guys away. He hasn’t wanted to just take a seventh-round pick and call it a day. He’s wanted some decent type of asset coming back, for whatever the reason.”
The insider added:
“I think with the Leafs, they’re going to continue to see what’s going on here, but it seems like if we don’t get a resolution today or by the end of the weekend, they’ll just rip it up say that it hasn’t worked, we’ll save the money. Go out there and find a new deal somewhere else.”
If the Maple Leafs can’t find a taker for Kampf, one willing to give up a decent asset in GM Brad Treliving’s view, the club could just let Kampf walk and save the cap space.
Maple Leafs Can’t Realistically Get Much for Kampf
Realistically, it would be tough to envisage the Toronto Maple Leafs getting more than a late-round pick for David Kampf. He’s a highly depreciated asset at this point, his skills notwithstanding.
As such, the Maple Leafs can’t expect to get, say, a second or third-round pick, or even a mid-level prospect. A team would have to be so desperate to give up a reasonable asset for Kampf. Perhaps a team looking to move a prospect it has given up on might consider such a deal.
But the reality is that, unless the Maple Leafs are willing to take a sixth or seventh-rounder, a contract termination may be the only way out.
Contract Termination Would Make Kampf a UFA
Assuming the situation between Kampf and the Maple Leafs ends in a termination, the Czech forward would become a UFA. That situation would allow him to sign with whatever team he chooses.
While that may seem like the ideal solution, it may not be quite so easy. Kampf, while known for his high-end defense, doesn’t score. So, teams looking for depth scoring may pass on the veteran center.
Other teams looking for a fourth-liner pivot, especially while dealing with injuries, may kick the tires on Kampf. However, he may not get more than a league-minimum deal at this point.
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