When the Toronto Maple Leafs selected Matthew Knies in the second round (57th overall) of the 2021 NHL Draft, his future was uncertain. He has since developed into a strong, physical player dominating at the college level and has begun to make a significant impact in the NHL over the past two seasons. Now 22, Knies and the Maple Leafs face negotiations to agree on a contract that reflects his value as a restricted free agent.
In two NHL seasons with Toronto, Knies has accumulated 44 goals and 50 assists, totaling 94 points across 161 games. After signing his entry-level contract in 2023, he joined the Maple Leafs during their playoff run, helping the team win a series for the first time since 2004 by defeating the Tampa Bay Lightning in six games. Knies played a key role in that series, contributing three assists, including one that set up an overtime victory in Game 6.
John Tavares, the former Maple Leafs captain, expressed his desire to stay with the team following their elimination in the second playoff round by the Florida Panthers. However, salary cap constraints pose challenges for signing him to a new contract. The Maple Leafs are reportedly open to re-signing Tavares, but his $11 million annual cap hit from his initial contract with the team complicates negotiations. Recent contracts signed by other players provide insight into how Toronto might handle these discussions.
Knies, standing 6-foot-3 and weighing 227 pounds, aims to improve his speed and presence during the offseason. In playoff competition, over three years, he has scored eight goals and six assists in 27 games, ranking him as the sixth-most productive Maple Leaf in the postseason since joining in 2023. Maple Leafs GM Brad Treliving faces the challenge of managing both Tavares’s and Knies’s contract talks this summer.
There are two possible contract paths for Knies: a long-term extension or a shorter-term bridge deal. A long-term contract would provide stability for both the player and the team, particularly given Knies’s commitment to staying in Toronto, as he stated during the team’s locker clean-out day. Playoff performance is a major consideration in contract talks, with Knies ranking 65th among players who have played over 20 postseason games since 2023, averaging 0.52 points per game.
For comparison, stars like Tyler Seguin signed a five-year, $42 million deal with Dallas, averaging $8.4 million annually. However, differences such as Seguin’s position as a center, higher regular-season points per game (0.71 compared to Knies’s 0.58), and greater NHL experience justify the disparity in salary. Despite his career-best season, where he scored 58 points in 78 games, Knies’s contract is expected to fall between those of Seguin and other younger players like Matt Coronato, who recently signed a seven-year, $45.5 million deal after half a season of NHL play.
GM Brad Treliving remains optimistic about re-signing Knies, referring to him as a key player with untapped potential. The impending expiration of contracts with Tavares and Mitchell Marner will provide the Maple Leafs with salary cap space to secure Knies without straining their finances. If Toronto truly values Knies’s future contributions, they are expected to invest appropriately.
Fan Take: This contract negotiation highlights the balancing act NHL teams face between rewarding rising stars and managing salary cap limits. How the Maple Leafs handle Knies’s deal could significantly influence their roster stability and playoff success in the coming years, making it a must-watch storyline for fans of the sport.
