The acquisition of Nathan Horton just prior to the trade deadline in late February gave the Toronto Maple Leafs more than just relief from the last five years of David Clarkson's contract, it gives Toronto options heading into the trade market this summer.
Horton's degenerative back problem will likely keep the 29-year-old Stanley Cup winner on long term injured reserve for the remainder of the 7-year, $37.1 Million contract signed with Columbus two years ago and allows Leafs management $5.3 Million of wiggle room to play with.
If the intention of Brendan Shanahan is to trade a significant amount of the Leafs core players, Horton's salary can be used to insure that Toronto stays above the NHL's salary cap floor.
The flexibility also comes into play if Toronto is forced to retain salary to deal veterans such as Joffrey Lupul, Phil Kessel or Dion Phaneuf or take back bad contracts in potential trades.
If for example, Toronto saw an opportunity to acquire a young building block such as LA Kings forward Tyler Toffoli (who is a restricted free agent this summer) or had an opportunity to garner a high draft pick from a team looking to dispose of an immovable player without buying them out, Horton's contract on LTIR (if the Leafs exceeded the cap ceiling) would virtually cancel out the cap hit of taking back a Mike Richards, Vincent Lacavalier or most of Alexander Semin's salary.
Food for thought when we see some of the rumored deals in the next month or so.
*******
There is still a shoe or two to drop regarding the assembly of Mike Babcock's coaching staff with the Maple Leafs. Babcock reportedly plans to bring assistant Jim Hiller and video coach Andrew Brewer with him from Detroit, but it is expected that another one or two additions will be made to the staff in the next few weeks.
Former Tampa Bay head coach Guy Boucher was interviewed by Leafs management prior to the hiring of Babcock last week and could be a possible option, but Boucher may be in the mix for the vacant New Jersey Devils head coaching position.
Paul Maclean is another possible option, based on his previous experience with Babcock as an assistant with Anaheim and Detroit, but reports indicate that Ottawa has not received any requests for permission to speak with the former Jack Adams Trophy winner.
Sportsnet’s Damien Cox reports that Babcock has interest in bringing Red Wings assistant Tony Granato to Toronto, but that the Wings may want to retain former Colorado head coach as an experienced hand to help first-time NHL head coach Jeff Blashill.
Ex-Files Update Ex-Leafs head coach Randy Carlyle lost out to Peter DeBoer for the coaching position in San Jose, but that may be good news for another former Toronto head coach.
Former Marlies bench boss Steve Spott could be in line for a position on DeBoer's staff with the Sharks after being dismissed along with interim coach Peter Horacek and GM Dave Nonis in mid April.
Spott served as an assistant with DeBoer with Plymouth and Kitchener in the OHL before Spott took over as head coach of the Rangers when DeBoer took the job with the Florida Panthers in 2008.
*******If you are interested in sponsorship or advertising your business in the Greater Toronto / Southern Ontario area on this column, please send a message for more information by clicking on the “Contact… button at the top of the page.*******
Note : Continue to check back to my column on Hockeybuzz throughout the day for the latest Leafs updates or Follow @mikeinbuffalo on Twitter
KINDLE USERS: Please sign up for Maple Leafs Buzz, which includes a free-of-charge 14-day trial and is just 99 cents per month afterwards. For more information click here.