TORONTO, ON - JANUARY 13: Joe Thornton #97 of the Toronto Maple Leafs skates against the Montreal Canadiens during an NHL game at Scotiabank Arena on January 13, 2021 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The Maple Leafs defeated the Canadiens 5-4 in overtime. (Photo by Claus Andersen/Getty Images)
The Toronto Maple Leafs enter this off-season with 12 pending unrestricted free-agents.
This is actually one of the smartest things that the Toronto Maple Leafs do, and it gives them an absolute ton of flexibility despite their commitment to four players for 40% of their salary cap.
One of the reasons the Leafs cap situation is better than most other teams, is because they don’t give out long-term deals to fringe players.