Auston Matthews and Mitch Marner, you have likely heard, are going to sign with the Toronto Maple Leafs for not a penny less than a gazillion dollars this summer. TSN’s talking heads have soberly warned us that only an eye-popping sum will let the Leafs keep their star players. Or else the Arizona Coyotes, dual-wielding offer sheets like a Goldeneye character, will charge in and steal them.
Of course, if you’ve been watching hockey with an eye on the cap sheet for a while now, that doesn’t sound quite right. Nobody offer sheets anyone anymore, and the Leafs aren’t the only team with good young players.