The Toronto Maple Leafs have one of the top goalie tandems in the NHL, but Toronto could look to trade one to bolster another position.
Heavy.com has the Maple Leafs trading Joseph Woll to the Buffalo Sabres in a deal involving another goalie.
Maple Leafs acquire:
Sabres acquire:
The proposed deal would be an intriguing one, as Toronto would deal Woll and also get out of Kampf’s deal for a young goalie and a bottom-six forward who would replace Kampf.
The Maple Leafs would acquire Levi, who’s entering the first year of a two-year, $1.625 million deal. He doesn’t have a clear path to playing time in the NHL and could be used to add another goalie. Levi would back up Stolarz and be a cheap option to create more cap space for Toronto. He went 2-7 with a 4.12 GAA and a .872 SV% as he struggled in limited time.
Toronto would also acquire Krebs, who’s a pest to play against, and would make the Maple Leafs that much harder to play against. Krebs is entering the final year of his two-year, $2.9 million deal. He would add some physicality and scoring to the Maple Leafs’ lineup, which is a need.
In return, the Maple Leafs would give up Woll, who would solidify the Sabres’ tandem with Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen. Woll is entering the first year of a three-year, $11 million deal. He went 27-14-1 with a 2.73 GAA and a .909 SV%. Toronto would only deal Woll if a Stolarz extension happens.
The Maple Leafs would also trade Kampf as a cap dump, but he could be a useful fourth-line center with the Sabres.
Maple Leafs Have a Goalie Decision to Make
Toronto signed Stolarz last offseason to a two-year deal, but he took over as the starter.
However, Stolarz is entering the final year of his deal, but if the Maple Leafs extend him, it makes sense for Toronto to trade Woll. Several teams would be interested in Woll, and Toronto could help improve their team elsewhere.
As for what Stolarz will get, Maple Leafs analyst Steve Dangle believes it will come in around $4 million per season.
“I wonder how close, I don’t think it gets it done, but I wonder how close to getting it done Joseph Woll’s literal contract comes? Woll is three years, $3.66 (million per year). 4-something… I see an incentive for both parties to get it done,” Dangle said on SDPN. “If you are Stolarz, you could use the security because there’s no guarantee this goes well. You might get injured again, and what happens if Woll is really good? With the Leafs, with the cap, everyone’s number is going up, if he’s unreal, you are happy about that.”
If Stolarz does sign a multi-year deal, Woll could be dealt. The Maple Leafs also have Dennis Hildeby and Artur Akhtyamov in the system.
Sabres Had Interest in Adding an Impact Goalie
Buffalo seemed locked in with a tandem of Luukkonen and Levi, but Levi has struggled.
However, the Sabres did sign Alex Lyon to be the backup, but he has been a third-stringer in the past. Entering the offseason, Sabres’ general manager Kevyn Adams hinted at adding another goalie.
“If we think there’s an opportunity to upgrade and make our team better at any position, we’re going to be open to that,” Adams said. “I’m certainly not scared about going into the season with UPL and Devon because I believe in both of them. But also it goes hand in hand with Lindy and what he’s saying. I think they’ll both look better if we play better defensively and just clean some stuff up. But we’ll continue to look at everything.”
Although Buffalo added Lyon, they could look for a bigger splash and add Woll as well.
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