Despite a bunch of free agents already finding new homes for next season and the Toronto Maple Leafs doing the majority of their free agency business on the first two days, there are still some quality depth pieces and veteran players on the market.
After signing Ryan Reaves, John Klingberg, Tyler Bertuzzi, Max Domi, Dylan Gambrell and some Marlie players, Brad Treliving and the Maple Leafs now have to shift their focus to their pending RFA Ilya Samsonov and a potential Matt Murray buyout that will more than likely come with it.
Suppose the Maple Leafs move on from Matt Murray. In that case, they might be looking for another goalie on the market to solidify the depth at that position, and according to the New York Post’s Larry Brooks, the Toronto Maple Leafs and Brian Elliott might be a thing that’s about to happen.
“Jaro Halak, Brian Elliott, Martin Jones and Thomas Greiss are out there seeking jobs as backups with Elliott perhaps on his way to Toronto.”
Elliott, 38, is coming off a two-year stint with Toronto’s divisional rival, the Tampa Bay Lightning. His 2022-23 season wasn’t the greatest compared to his 2021-22 season with the Lightning. In 22 games this past season, he posted a record of 12-8-2 with an ugly .891 SV% and a 3.40 GAA.
However, his first season with the Lightning went a lot better, albeit in fewer games. In just 19 games, he posted a record of 11-4-3 with a .912 SV% and a 2.43 GAA.
At Elliott’s age and the fact that he’s backing up arguably the best goalie in the league, I didn’t expect him to play in a ton of games, and if he indeed is on his way to Toronto, I would expect him to be the team’s third-string goalie and as I said above just give the team more depth at that position.
Joseph Woll, who should be, without a doubt, the team’s backup this coming season, will now need waivers to be sent down to the Marlies. So it’s not the gamble Toronto should be taking, and they should just have Elliott as the third string if he is indeed coming to Toronto.
(All stats from Hockey-Reference.com)
