5 players that may have played their last game with the Maple Leafs
The Toronto Maple Leafs will be a little bit different in 2024-25.
The Toronto Maple Leafs are officially eliminated from postseason contention. They lost in game seven to the Boston Bruins at TD Garden again.
There are going to be some major changes that come as a result of this game seven defeat to the Bruins. They can't run it back with the same group.
A lot of players on Toronto's roster are on expired deals. There are a few that also may not be on expired deals but have played their last game with the team anyway.
These are the three players that very well could be on a new team at the start of next season:
Tyler Bertuzzi may not return to the Toronto Maple Leafs next season
Tyler Bertuzzi surprised some people by not going back to the Boston Bruins last summer. He seemed like a good fit. He ended up on the team that would be eliminated by the Bruins instead.
It was a one-year deal with the Leafs so that is officially done. He is a free agent that could end up with any team.
Bertuzzi had a slow start in Toronto as he was struggling to find his way. He ended up figuring it out a little bit and found his game.
He finished the year with 21 goals and 22 assists for 43 points in 80 games played. In the end, you'd probably like to see a little bit more from him but it is still a good amount of points.
If Bertuzzi is a third guy on a skill line, you are in good shape. If he doesn't have a bad start, he probably ends with even more points. A lot of teams will give him a call, including Toronto.
Max Domi may consider moving on again which makes sense for him
Max Domi got to live out his dream of playing for his dad's Toronto Maple Leafs. However, he may not be the best fit there going forward if they decide to make some changes.
Like Bertuzzi, he signed a one year deal last summer after finishing the year with a very strong Dallas Stars team.
He earned that opportunity with the Stars (and eventually Leafs) because of the fact that he revived his career with the Chicago Blackhawks.
Domi is going to test the free agent waters this summer. That doesn't completely eliminate his chances of returning to the Leafs but it is possible he played his last game with them.
Mark Giordano may very well retire now that his 2023-24 season is over
Mark Giordano has had a very nice NHL career. He was an undrafted player that turned himself into a Norris Trophy caliber defenseman.
After spending the first 15 years of his career with the Calgary Flames, he had a cup of coffee with teh Seattle Kraken in their inagural year before spending parts of the last three with the Maple Leafs.
He is now 40 years old and doesn't have a contract for next season. He had three goals and six assists for nine points in 46 games played this year. All signs point to him retiring from the NHL.
If this is it for Giordano, he should be very proud of his career. He won a Norris Trophy and had a long stretch of great hockey from a very hard position.
TJ Brodie is likely done with the Toronto Maple Leafs after this year
The Toronto Maple Leafs are going to have to make a big move when it comes to defensemen in their organization.
One of them could be not re-signing TJ Brodie during the summer. The 33-year-old defenseman will be a free agent on July 1st which means he is free to sign with any team.
The Leafs thought they had something when they first acquired him but they never were able to get out of the first round together. Both sides would benefit from moving on.
A lot of teams would go for a guy like Brodie. He only scored one goal but he had 26 assists in 78 games played this year. The guy can clearly still make an impact and lots of teams will be giving him a call.
Ilya Samsonov played his last game with the Toronto Maple Leafs
Joseph Woll proved that he is worth keeping for the Toronto Maple Leafs. He is a younger guy looking to find a consistent role in the NHL.
That means that Ilya Samsonov is likely out. He is on an expiring contract and has probably played his last game in a Leafs sweater.
Samsonov had a good game seven but he gave up a bad tying goal to Hampus Lindholm. If the Leafs would have gotten a save there, David Pastrnak would have never scored in overtime to send the Boston Bruins to the second round instead.
Samsonov went 23-7-8 in the regular season which is nice but he had a 3.13 goals against average and a .890 save percentage.
He had a bad year but played for a good team so his record was better. He often received the goal support needed to win.
Woll can't do it by himself nor should he be expected to do it by himself. However, Samsonov is not the guy to pair with him next year. They need to address this.
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