Florida Panthers goalie Sergei Bobrovsky has the Toronto Maple Leafs “high” on his list if he doesn’t re-sign with his current team.
Bobrovsky becomes a free agent on July 1 when his seven-year, $70 million contract expires with the Panthers. He was a terrific signing by Florida, helping the team to win two Stanley Cups and make it to three Stanley Cup Finals in a row when he was in the crease for the Cats.
But Bobrovsky is a free agent next week, and there is no guarantee he re-signs with the Panthers, who may not be willing to meet his reported asking price of $42 million over six or seven years.
That’s where a team like the Maple Leafs, who are looking for an upgrade in net, comes in.
Sergei Bobrovsky Interested in Playing for Maple Leafs
Reports from various insiders as of late have connected Bobrovsky with the Maple Leafs, who recently traded Joseph Woll to the Philadelphia Flyers.
The Maple Leafs have Anthony Stolarz and Dennis Hildeby set to be the team’s goaltending tandem next year, but Bobrovsky is an upgrade on both of them. If the team is truly trying to go for it and make a Stanley Cup run during Auston Matthews’ final two seasons of club control, then it makes sense that the Maple Leafs GM John Chayka pursues a goaltending upgrade.
And now, it looks like there is mutual interest with Bobrovsky joining the Maple Leafs, according to TSN insider Darren Dreger.
“NEWS: Darren Dreger on OverDrive mentioned that the Maple Leafs are high on Sergei Bobrovsky’s list if the Panthers don’t re-sign him,” wrote TSN’s OverDrive on X.
Maple Leafs Need a Championship Goalie
While Stolarz and Hildeby are both solid goalies, they are both flawed.
Stolarz — who was ironically Bobrovsky’s backup in Florida when they last won the Stanley Cup — is talented but also extremely injury-prone. As for Hildeby, he is not yet proven at the NHL level.
While Bobrovsky had a down year for the Panthers, he is still one of the most experienced and successful goalies in the NHL, and he would bring a championship pedigree to the Maple Leafs’ crease.
The Maple Leafs also have plenty of cap room, so they would have the cap space to offer Bobrovsky the contract that he craves.
We’ll see if it gets done, but there seems to be mutual interest here between player and team.
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