Well Cliff Fletcher has said that he will go after free agents but not those in their mid 30s. I also don't think he wants to blow the whole budget on 1 or 2 players which rules out Brian Campbell and Marian Hossa. The Leafs have about 16 players signed excluding Matt Stajan who is a restricted free agents. Assuming he is signed for about the same money as Steen, the Leafs will have about $16 million to spend on 6 or 7 players. These figures will of course change if Kubina or McCabe are traded. I think Fletcher will leave cap room so let's just say he has about $12 million to spend. This is what he should be looking for:
Forwards
Michael Ryder (27)- $3.25 million - he should be able to bounce back and score again
Radim Vrbata (27) - $2.5 million - talented scorer, something the Leafs don't have
Dominic Moore (27) - $750,000 - cheap energy player, good skater
Antti Miettinen (26) - $1.7 million - good two way player
Defense
Brook Orpik (27) - $3 million - developed into a top 4 defenseman
Mike Commodore (28) - $1.5 million - physical defenseman, loves to battle
Goalie
Alex Auld (27) - $800,000 - coming off his best NHL season, good back up
These 7 players will add $13.5 million to your payroll and they all are justing getting into the prime so they should have a few good years left in them.
12 years ago
