The Toronto Maple Leafs are heading into the offseason with numerous storylines hanging in the air. The ongoing GM search has likely held up numerous personnel decisions.
Among those decisions, players who are unlikely to return remain in limbo as they await clarity on their situation. Moves regarding these players won’t happen until there’s a new GM and President of Hockey Operations in place.
So, here’s a look at the top three Maple Leafs players who won’t be back for the 2026-27 season.
Top 3 Maple Leafs Players Who Won’t Be Back in 2026-27
Matias Maccelli
Matias Maccelli promised to be a solid pickup last offseason. The Maple Leafs got him or a third-round pick from the Utah Mammoth. The hope was that a change of scenery could help the former fourth-round pick from the 2019 NHL Draft rediscover his scoring touch.
That wasn’t the case early in the season. While he did finish the season much better, his 14 goals and 39 points in 71 games weren’t quite what the Maple Leafs were expecting.
That situation has called into question Maccelli’s return to the club next season. He’s a restricted free agent (RFA) with a $4.11 million Qualifying Offer (QO). If the Leafs want to retain his rights, the club would have to extend the QO.
The issue here would be Maccelli’s willingness to accept a deal lower than his QO, should the Maple Leafs balk at signing him for at least $4.1 million.
If the Leafs pass on extending Maccelli a QO, he’ll automatically become an unrestricted free agent (UFA). At that point, would Toronto be willing to let Maccelli go for nothing?
It’s a tough spot. The club may try to trade the 25-year-old’s rights. However, that might not be an easy proposition.
Max Domi
Max Domi has to be the most complicated case of all Toronto players this offseason. He’s been largely disappointing despite his upbeat playing style. He hasn’t really contributed much offensively (12 goals and 36 points in 80 games), while being a bit of a defensive liability.
With the salary cap going up, the Maple Leafs may see Domi as a relatively good contract at $3.75 million AAV for the next two seasons.
However, the club may feel that they need to find a more offensively inclined player to roll in the middle six. Additionally, the team may feel it needs more defensive reliability.
The issue lies in the trouble there may be in trading the 30-year-old. There really isn’t much of a market for Domi. Unless the Leafs were willing to give him away practically, the fate facing Domi could be similar to that of David Kampf this season. As such, Robidas Island could have a new resident next season.
Former Maple Leafs Prospect Nick Robertson
Nick Robertson actually had a good season for the Maple Leafs this year. The 24-year-old topped his career-highs in goals, assists, and points this season. He appeared in 78 games, the highest in his career.
Robertson is also an RFA and comes with a $1.825 million QO. That figure is hardly a prohibitive amount. However, the Maple Leafs would need to determine if Robertson is in their plans. Also, Robertson would need to figure out if he wants to return to Toronto.
Those two positions may not line up. If they don’t, Robertson could be looking for a new home next season. The issue is that the Maple Leafs have tried trading Robertson before to no avail. That’s why Toronto may have no other choice but to cut bait on a once-promising prospect.
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