The Toronto Maple Leafs are expected to pursue Detroit Red Wings winger David Perron in free agency, according to NHL insider David Pagnotta.
Perron, who signed a two-year, $9.5 million contract with the Red Wings, will become a free agent on July 1. Pagnotta notes that the Maple Leafs are likely to show interest in signing the 35-year-old winger.
“One veteran forward the Maple Leafs may try to add this summer: David Perron,” Pagnotta wrote on his website, TheFourthPeriod.
Despite Detroit missing the playoffs, Perron has expressed a desire to re-sign with the Red Wings this offseason.
“There’s no reason at this point to think about anywhere else or anything else. I hope it works out,” Perron said, according to TheHockeyNews.
Perron, drafted 27th overall by the St. Louis Blues in the 2007 NHL draft, has been in the NHL since the 2007-08 season.
In the past season with Detroit, Perron played 76 games, scoring 17 goals and 30 assists for 47 points. He was a key player in the Blues’ 2019 Stanley Cup victory. DailyFaceoff.com projects Perron to sign a two-year deal worth $3 million per season this summer.
Maple Leafs Front Office to Consider Everything
After Toronto’s first-round playoff elimination by the Boston Bruins, Maple Leafs president Brendan Shanahan stated that all options are on the table for potential moves, including trades and free agency.
“We do an analysis at the end of every season, we look at our team, we look forward and we look for ways to be better. We do that every year. In the past, I believe there are times where you talk about patience, and I still believe there are times where patience is the suitable call,” Shanahan said during a May 10 press conference.
“However, when you see patterns persist and the results don’t change, you have to adjust the way that you think about things. We will look at everything this summer, and we will consider everything this summer. All with the intention of the one thing we are here for, which is to make the Maple Leafs better and to win,” Shanahan continued.
Mitch Marner and captain John Tavares have been linked to potential trades.
Maple Leafs Pending Free Agents
Toronto faces an offseason with 10 unrestricted free agents (UFAs) and four restricted free agents (RFAs). Key UFAs include forwards Tyler Bertuzzi and Max Domi, who recorded 43 and 47 points, respectively. The team also needs to address its goaltending situation, with Ilya Samsonov and Martin Jones both pending free agents, while Joseph Woll is under contract for the 2024-25 NHL season.
The full list of Maple Leafs free agents is as follows:
– Tyler Bertuzzi, LW, UFA
– Max Domi, C, UFA
– Connor Dewar, LW, RFA
– Noah Gregor, RW, RFA
– Nicholas Robertson, C, RFA
– TJ Brodie, D, UFA
– Joel Edmundson, D, UFA
– Mark Giordano, D, UFA
– Ilya Lybushkin, D, UFA
– Timothy Liljegren, D, RFA
– Ilya Samsonov, G, UFA
– Martin Jones, G, UFA
