The return of Randy Carlyle for another season as Leafs coach may be the impetus for a number of off-season changes, including a change in philosophy that will come with a new coaching staff and significant augmentation of the roster to better suit a two-way game that Toronto must play to get back to the post-season.
One change that is a virtual certainty is the departure of restricted free agent James Reimer.
Reimer was not a happy camper after losing his starting job to Jonathan Bernier midway through the season and had a central role in the March collapse that cost Toronto their second straight trip to the playoffs.
Leafs GM Dave Nonis will undoubtedly extend a qualifying offer of just under $2 Million to Reimer to retain his trade rights, but comments made by the Morweena, Manitoba native at the end of the season indicate that he does not want to return as Bernier’s backup and would like to be moved to a club where he can get a fair shot at a starting job.
With Reimer likely gone, a key question for Nonis will be to find a goalie to play at least 20 to 25 games and be capable of playing more if the Leafs need to be careful with Bernier after undergoing sports hernia surgery.
Salary will also be a consideration, as Toronto has only 12 players under contract for the 2014-15 season and will have to spend a significant portion of their available cap space to re-sign their own free agents and to have options on the trade/free agent market this summer.
Barring a trade for a goaltender under contract, the only option would be to delve into the free agent market. Younger backups like Alex Stalock, Justin Peters, Carter Hutton and Chad Johnson are likely to be looking for opportunities where they can get more playing time and a greater role, as will veterans Jonas Hiller, Ryan Miller and Martin Brodeur, who believe they can still be a team’s go-to guy.
Viable options for Toronto could be:
Drew MacIntyre – Age : 30, Team : Toronto Maple Leafs/Marlies, 2013-14 Salary : $600,000(NHL), $250,000(AHL)
The Charlottetown, PEI native has gone 42-20-6 in two seasons with the Leafs AHL affiliate and performed well during the pre-season and a two game stint with Toronto late in the year.
Positive - Known as a good team guy and would likely be amenable to signing a league-minimum one-way deal for a chance at making the Leafs.
Negative - Has only six NHL appearances in his decade long professional career and the question is whether he is good enough to play significant time in the NHL.
Al Montoya – Age : 29, Team : Winnipeg Jets, 2013-14 Salary : $601,000
The 2004 sixth overall pick of the New York Rangers did not earn a full time NHL job until 2010 with the New York Islanders, but Montoya has played well as a backup on Long Island and in Winnipeg.
Positive - outplayed Jets starter Ondrej Pavelec last season, with a 13-8-3 record, 2.30 GAA and .920 save percentage. Jets GM Kevin Chevaldayoff intends to stick with Pavelec, who is signed for another three seasons.
Negative – Off his performance last season, Montoya may be looking for a team to pay him significantly more than his $600,000 salary.
Evgeni Nabokov – Age : 38, Team : New York Islanders, 2013-14 Salary : $3.25 Million
Injuries limited the veteran starter to 40 games and his numbers suffered(15-14-8, 2.74 GAA, .905 Sv %) due to playing for the struggling Islanders.
Positive – Experience as a starter and proved from disastrous KHL stint that he wants to stay in the NHL, which could make him willing to take a significantly reduced salary.
Negative – Nabokov may think he can still be a starter and would not be willing to take a reduced role behind Bernier.
Tim Thomas - Age : 40, Team : Dallas Stars, 2013-14 Salary : $3.75 Million
The former Conn Smythe Trophy winner played well at times in Florida with a young Panthers club making lots of defensive mistakes, but was traded to Dallas when Roberto Luongo was acquired from Vancouver.
Positive – Familiarity with teams in the Atlantic Division and still can stand on his head when called upon.
Negative – May balk at being a backup, but based on his past controversies due to his political beliefs, playing in the hockey media epicenter of Toronto might be a problem.
Ray Emery - Age : 31, Team : Philadelphia Flyers, 2013-14 Salary : $1.65 Million
After a phenomenal statistical year with Chicago as the 1B to Corey Crawford’s 1A, Emery signed with the Flyers and struggled(9-12-2, 2.96 GAA and .903 sv %)
Positive – Experience in high pressure hockey markets(Ottawa, Philadelphia and Chicago)
Negative – Injury history limits ability to move side-to-side.
Scott Clemmensen – Age : 36, Team : Florida Panthers, 2013-14 Salary : $1.2 Million
Clemmensen’s time in Florida may be over, as Luongo normally plays between 60-65 games and veteran backup Dan Ellis was acquired in the trade for Tim Thomas.
Positive – Previous experience in the Toronto market, played well filling in for Brodeur in 2009 and has been dependable backup in Florida for most of his five year tenure.
Negative – Age may be catching up to Clemmensen, as his GAA has been over 3.00 and save percentage under .900 the last two seasons.
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The Toronto Marlies and Texas Stars face off in Game 1 of the Calder Cup Western Conference Final Friday at Cedar Park Center just outside of Austin, TX.
The Marlies have been inactive since eliminating the Chicago Wolves at Ricoh Coliseum one week ago and have won all seven of their playoff games so far.
The two clubs met four times during the regular season, with each winning their two games at home.
Winger Jerry D’Amigo leads the AHL in scoring with 12 points and is tied for the club lead in goals(4) with Peter Holland and Sam Carrick.
The game can be seen on Leafs TV at 8:30pm EST
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