The Toronto Maple Leafs Paid Another Replacement Player Above the League Minimum
The Toronto Maple Leafs have re-signed Connor Dewar to a one-year contract extension just above the league minimum.
It’s not a bad deal for the Toronto Maple Leafs because at least they avoided overpaying him significantly, or giving him any no-trade protection, which they tend to do at a comically high rate.
The good news here is that Dewar is 24 and has a bit of upside…..if you squint.
The even better news is that he makes $1.18 and a team can bury as much as $1.15 in the minors, so if Dewar can’t play, he can just be demoted without any real penalty. (puckpedia.com).
The problem, if there is one, is just one of principle: why pay more than the league minimum for players who are interchangeable with players you can get cheaper? Why continue to block your young players with veterans who have less upside?
The Leafs might not want to keep going with kyle Dubas and Brendan Shanahan’s Studs and Duds approach to team-building around the NHL’s salary cap, but as long as they continue to pay the Studs every time they overpay a Dud it hurts the team.
