Leafs qualify two RFA's ahead of Wednesday's deadline
Less than 24 hours after drafting speedy two-way winger Rodion Amirov with the 15th overall draft selection, the Maple Leafs have extended qualifying offers to two of their restricted free agents on Wednesday.
Sportsnet's Chris Johnston has reported that the Leafs have qualified defenseman Travis Dermott and winger Ilya Mikheyev ahead of today's 5 p.m. deadline, as expected, to avoid having either player join the long list of unrestricted free agents who will be available on Thursday when free agency opens up at noon (EST).
Dermott, who turns 24 on December 22nd, registered 11 points in 56 games with the Leafs last season after returning from injury. The feisty blueliner has just 157 NHL games to his credit, but has shown solid growth over that span and has definite top-4 potential. At just 23 years-of-age and coming off of his ELC, it seems likely that Dermott bets on himself and signs a bridge deal rather than committing to a long-term, lower-salary type of deal.
Mikheyev was a budding young KHL star prior to signing with the Maple Leafs ahead of the 2019-20 season, but nobody knew what to expect from the lanky winger at the NHL level. Thankfully for the Buds, Mikheyev transitioned very well to the smaller ice. His strong skating ability, slick hands, quick shot and snap decision-making were all tools that have endeared the soon-to-be 26-year-old to Leafs Nation.
Mikheyev registered 23 points in 39 games, playing primarily middle-six minutes for the Leafs in 2019-20 prior to having his season cut short by a freak incident against the New Jersey Devils in December.
Johnston has also confirmed the Mikheyev camp will continue to work with the Leafs towards a new contract at the conclusion of the 2020 NHL Entry Draft, which resumes at 11:30am EST on Wednesday.
Like Dermott, I would imagine that Mikheyev is eyeing a shorter-term contract that will allow him to prove his worth to the club prior to seeking an appropriate pay increase on his next deal.
No word yet on what the Leafs plan to do with former first round pick Frederik Gauthier and former second rounder Jeremy Bracco, but all signs point towards neither player being qualified by the club.
| G | A | PTS | ||
| Bobby Brink | 1 | 3 | 4 | |
| Morgan Rielly | 1 | 3 | 4 | |
| Jonny Brodzinski | 2 | 1 | 3 | |
| Noah Cates | 2 | 1 | 3 | |
| Kirill Marchenko | 2 | 1 | 3 | |
| David Pastrnak | 2 | 1 | 3 | |
| Tyson Foerster | 1 | 2 | 3 | |
| Cam Fowler | 1 | 2 | 3 | |
| Patrik Laine | 1 | 2 | 3 | |
| Oskar Sundqvist | 1 | 2 | 3 | |
| Nick Suzuki | 1 | 2 | 3 | |
| Urho Vaakanainen | 1 | 2 | 3 | |
| Dylan Cozens | - | 3 | 3 | |
| Zachary Bolduc | 2 | - | 2 | |
| Simon Edvinsson | 2 | - | 2 | |
| Mitch Marner | 2 | - | 2 | |
| Sam Bennett | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Adam Fantilli | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Brad Marchand | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Jake Neighbours | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Complete stats | ||||
| STANDINGS 2024-2025 | ||||||
TOP 10 | GP | W | L | OL | PTS | |
Jets | 58 | 41 | 14 | 3 | 85 | |
Capitals | 58 | 38 | 12 | 8 | 84 | |
Stars | 58 | 37 | 19 | 2 | 76 | |
Maple Leafs | 58 | 36 | 20 | 2 | 74 | |
Golden Knights | 58 | 34 | 18 | 6 | 74 | |
Panthers | 59 | 35 | 21 | 3 | 73 | |
Oilers | 58 | 34 | 20 | 4 | 72 | |
Wild | 58 | 34 | 20 | 4 | 72 | |
Lightning | 57 | 33 | 20 | 4 | 70 | |
Hurricanes | 58 | 33 | 21 | 4 | 70 | |
| Conference | Cumulative | ||||||