<p>48 hours after the Stanley Cup is presented the first significant part of the offseason will begin. Buyout season is always somewhat underwhelming and given the spike in the salary cap, it might be not even be as eventful as years past.</p>
<p>The Leafs don&#8217;t often participate in buyouts, instead opting to find ways of sending out players that are no longer fits via trade. It&#8217;s a better course of action as long as you don&#8217;t need to send an asset along to get the deal done. For almost every Leaf player that is a buyout candidate, a 50% salary retention comes in cheaper and obviously carries a shorter commitment to dead cap space.</p>
<p>The biggest hindrance for the Maple Leafs being a team that uses buyouts with frequency is their tendency to offer signing bonuses as the primary way of compensating their players. There&#8217;s a mixed bag there too, as in some case the Leafs might have players that become worthwhile trade chips after their bonus has been paid (most often on July 1st), and potentially trading away someone without retention because their actual dollars owed vs. cap hit is favourable for teams that need to pinch their pennies more than the Leafs do.</p>
<p>Here&#8217;s a rundown of some of the potential buyout options for the Maple Leafs.</p>
<h2>Max Domi</h2>
<p>2025-26: $2.75M<br />
2026-27: $2.75M<br />
2027-28: $2.75M<br />
2028-29: $500k<br />
2029-30: $500k<br />
2030-31: $500k</p>
<p>Max Domi&#8217;s handful of playoff moments show that he is a player that steps up come playoff time. Seven points, including three goals in 13 playoff games meant he matched the production of John Tavares, Matthew Knies, and Morgan Rielly, even if Domi&#8217;s penalty situation left a lot to be desired.</p>
<p>Domi&#8217;s 33 points in 74 games over the regular season are far more troubling and only getting eight goals out of a $3.75M AAV player is unacceptable unless you are talking about a defenceman, and no one is mistaking Domi for someone who plays defence.</p>
<p>Max does deserve some credit having to step into a centre role for much of the season despite it clearly being a bad idea. That shouldn&#8217;t fall on him, that&#8217;s on Craig Berube and Brad Treliving. And if we want to give some benefit of doubt to Domi about his production potentially being better if he gets a full season on the wing, that&#8217;s fair.</p>
<p>The problem with Domi is that he&#8217;s a hard player to fit into the Leafs lineup card and when he&#8217;s not producing offensively, he&#8217;s a pretty big liability on the ice. It&#8217;s not a horrible idea for the Maple Leafs to move on from him, but his bonus laden contract means that there is little savings in doing so via buyout.</p>
<p>Domi has $2.5M of a signing bonus to be paid out this summer. After that he&#8217;ll be owed a $1.5M salary, and $3M in salary and bonuses in each of his two remaining contract years after this one. He represents a savings to his cap hit and that might make him a tradeable player for the Leafs, remembering that Domi also has a 13 team no trade list.</p>
<h2>David Kampf</h2>
<p>2025-26: $1.63M<br />
2026-27: $1.63M<br />
2027-28: $358k<br />
2028-29: $358k</p>
<p>Kampf was scratched down the stretch as well as in the playoffs, and it should be painfully clear that the Leafs want to move on from what was one of Brad Treliving&#8217;s first mistakes as General Manager. With Laughton looking more like a fourth line centre than a third line option and Craig Berube trusting Pontus Holmberg more than Kampf, it really is just a matter of how the Leafs manage Kampf&#8217;s cap hit.</p>
<p>Thanks to signing bonuses, a buyout isn&#8217;t the cards here. The Leafs would receive more cap relief and reduce the number of years of dead cap space by simply assigning Kampf to the Marlies. A marginally greater savings would come if the Leafs retained 50% of Kampf&#8217;s salary in trade. Depending on what the asset would be in return that might be the best option or for the Maple Leafs to seek out a situation that minimalizes the amount they need to retain.</p>
<p>After Kampf&#8217;s signing bonus is paid he will be owed $1.075M in 2025-26, and $2.4M between bonuses and salary in 2026-27.</p>
<h2>Calle Jarnkrok</h2>
<p>2025-26: $1.58M<br />
2026-27: $258k</p>
<p>Jarnkrok&#8217;s situation isn&#8217;t entirely different from David Kampf&#8217;s situation, but the fact that he&#8217;s in the final year of his deal makes the notion of salary retention or assigning Jarnkrok to the Marlies a bit more likely. The buyout still runs a bit high because of his signing bonus, but after that is paid, Jarnkrok would only require his new team pay the league minimum salary of $775k. Like Kampf, Jarnkrok has a 10 team no trade list, but that isn&#8217;t much of a barrier.</p>
<h2>Oliver Ekman-Larsson</h2>
<p>2025-26: $2.67M<br />
2026-27: $2.67M<br />
2027-28: $1.17M<br />
2028-29: $667k<br />
2029-30: $667k<br />
2030-31: $667k</p>
<p>Of the players listed, Ekman-Larsson is easily the least likely to be bought out. The Leafs have their blueline under contract and seem content with that. Because of that, it probably doesn&#8217;t matter that OEL&#8217;s buyout is less than ideal for the Maple Leafs, and while he might be expensive as a 5th defenceman, he will play up in the lineup as needed as well and will earn his keep that way. This year&#8217;s signing bonus is the one that hurts, and if the Leafs are considering moving on from Ekman-Larsson it would be via trade after his signing bonus is paid that would be the most manageable option. Ekman-Larsson also has a 16-team no trade list.</p>
<h2>Ryan Reaves</h2>
<p>2025-26: $450k<br />
2026-27: $450k</p>
<p>The Leafs bit the bullet and sent Reaves to the Marlies this season to save money. There&#8217;s no reason why they won&#8217;t do it again next year. Buying out Reaves would hurt the team but do right by the player. That&#8217;s not endorsing that move, simply stating the only reason a buyout would be an option. What is far more likely is that the Maple Leafs will permit Reaves and his agent to talk to other teams to see if anyone sees an NHL opening for him and then Toronto will ship him out for future considerations.</p>
<h2>Matt Benning</h2>
<p>2025-26: $417k<br />
2026-27: $417k</p>
<p>Like Reaves, Benning would be an expensive favour to do for a player and instead it is far more likely that Benning and his agent can shop around to see if there is a team that is a fit for him. The only other incentive I can think for the Leafs to buyout either Reaves or Benning is if the team requires Standard Player Contract spaces if they anticipate needing all 50 of the NHL eligible deals this year.</p>
<p><em>Buyout calculations from <a href="http://puckpedia.com">PuckPedia</a></em></p>


48 hours after the Stanley Cup is presented the first significant part of the offseason will begin. Buyout season is always somewhat underwhelming and given the spike in the salary cap, it might be not even be as eventful as years past.

The Leafs don't often participate in buyouts, instead opting to find ways of sending out players that are no longer fits via trade. It's a better course of action as long as you don't need to send an asset along to get the deal done. For almost every Leaf player that is a buyout candidate, a 50% salary retention comes in cheaper and obviously carries a shorter commitment to dead cap space.

The biggest hindrance for the Maple Leafs being a team that uses buyouts with frequency is their tendency to offer signing bonuses as the primary way of compensating their players. There's a mixed bag there too, as in some case the Leafs might have players that become worthwhile trade chips after their bonus has been paid (most often on July 1st), and potentially trading away someone without retention because their actual dollars owed vs. cap hit is favourable for teams that need to pinch their pennies more than the Leafs do.

Here's a rundown of some of the potential buyout options for the Maple Leafs.
<h2>Max Domi</h2>
2025-26: $2.75M
2026-27: $2.75M
2027-28: $2.75M
2028-29: $500k
2029-30: $500k
2030-31: $500k

Max Domi's handful of playoff moments show that he is a player that steps up come playoff time. Seven points, including three goals in 13 playoff games meant he matched the production of John Tavares, Matthew Knies, and Morgan Rielly, even if Domi's penalty situation left a lot to be desired.

Domi's 33 points in 74 games over the regular season are far more troubling and only getting eight goals out of a $3.75M AAV player is unacceptable unless you are talking about a defenceman, and no one is mistaking Domi for someone who plays defence.

Max does deserve some credit having to step into a centre role for much of the season despite it clearly being a bad idea. That shouldn't fall on him, that's on Craig Berube and Brad Treliving. And if we want to give some benefit of doubt to Domi about his production potentially being better if he gets a full season on the wing, that's fair.

The problem with Domi is that he's a hard player to fit into the Leafs lineup card and when he's not producing offensively, he's a pretty big liability on the ice. It's not a horrible idea for the Maple Leafs to move on from him, but his bonus laden contract means that there is little savings in doing so via buyout.

Domi has $2.5M of a signing bonus to be paid out this summer. After that he'll be owed a $1.5M salary, and $3M in salary and bonuses in each of his two remaining contract years after this one. He represents a savings to his cap hit and that might make him a tradeable player for the Leafs, remembering that Domi also has a 13 team no trade list.
<h2>David Kampf</h2>
2025-26: $1.63M
2026-27: $1.63M
2027-28: $358k
2028-29: $358k

Kampf was scratched down the stretch as well as in the playoffs, and it should be painfully clear that the Leafs want to move on from what was one of Brad Treliving's first mistakes as General Manager. With Laughton looking more like a fourth line centre than a third line option and Craig Berube trusting Pontus Holmberg more than Kampf, it really is just a matter of how the Leafs manage Kampf's cap hit.

Thanks to signing bonuses, a buyout isn't the cards here. The Leafs would receive more cap relief and reduce the number of years of dead cap space by simply assigning Kampf to the Marlies. A marginally greater savings would come if the Leafs retained 50% of Kampf's salary in trade. Depending on what the asset would be in return that might be the best option or for the Maple Leafs to seek out a situation that minimalizes the amount they need to retain.

After Kampf's signing bonus is paid he will be owed $1.075M in 2025-26, and $2.4M between bonuses and salary in 2026-27.
<h2>Calle Jarnkrok</h2>
2025-26: $1.58M
2026-27: $258k

Jarnkrok's situation isn't entirely different from David Kampf's situation, but the fact that he's in the final year of his deal makes the notion of salary retention or assigning Jarnkrok to the Marlies a bit more likely. The buyout still runs a bit high because of his signing bonus, but after that is paid, Jarnkrok would only require his new team pay the league minimum salary of $775k. Like Kampf, Jarnkrok has a 10 team no trade list, but that isn't much of a barrier.
<h2>Oliver Ekman-Larsson</h2>
2025-26: $2.67M
2026-27: $2.67M
2027-28: $1.17M
2028-29: $667k
2029-30: $667k
2030-31: $667k

Of the players listed, Ekman-Larsson is easily the least likely to be bought out. The Leafs have their blueline under contract and seem content with that. Because of that, it probably doesn't matter that OEL's buyout is less than ideal for the Maple Leafs, and while he might be expensive as a 5th defenceman, he will play up in the lineup as needed as well and will earn his keep that way. This year's signing bonus is the one that hurts, and if the Leafs are considering moving on from Ekman-Larsson it would be via trade after his signing bonus is paid that would be the most manageable option. Ekman-Larsson also has a 16-team no trade list.
<h2>Ryan Reaves</h2>
2025-26: $450k
2026-27: $450k

The Leafs bit the bullet and sent Reaves to the Marlies this season to save money. There's no reason why they won't do it again next year. Buying out Reaves would hurt the team but do right by the player. That's not endorsing that move, simply stating the only reason a buyout would be an option. What is far more likely is that the Maple Leafs will permit Reaves and his agent to talk to other teams to see if anyone sees an NHL opening for him and then Toronto will ship him out for future considerations.
<h2>Matt Benning</h2>
2025-26: $417k
2026-27: $417k

Like Reaves, Benning would be an expensive favour to do for a player and instead it is far more likely that Benning and his agent can shop around to see if there is a team that is a fit for him. The only other incentive I can think for the Leafs to buyout either Reaves or Benning is if the team requires Standard Player Contract spaces if they anticipate needing all 50 of the NHL eligible deals this year.

<em>Buyout calculations from <a href="http://puckpedia.com">PuckPedia</a></em>

Recent articles from Jon Steitzer

Breaking News