There is a ton of uncertainty surrounding the Toronto Maple Leafs heading into the offseason, with new GM John Chayka now leading the way.
Most important of all, of course, remains the Auston Matthews dilemma and whether he will stay or potentially seek a trade out of Toronto. Discussions about the haul the Maple Leafs could get in return for their captain have been flying nonetheless, but on Wednesday, TSN insider Chris Johnston revealed that he’s been told young star winger Matthew Knies might actually have more value on the trade market.
“I actually had someone say to me this week who works for an NHL team that I won’t name. He said if we were trading right now, we would actually give up more for Matthew Knies than we would for Auston Matthews. He was just saying the value of knowing for sure you’ve got five or six years of Knies in his prime already signed would probably force him to give up more in that trade than for Matthews,”
The 28-year-old Matthews has two years remaining on the four-year, $53 million extension he signed with the Maple Leafs in 2023, while Knies, 23, has five years left on the six-year, $46.5 million deal he signed to extend in Toronto last summer.
At first thought, most would assume that Matthews clearly carries more value than Knies, but in reality, it does make some sense that the latter could fetch an even stronger return.
He’s five years younger, has far less wear and tear on his body, and is locked in at $7.75 million per season through 2030-31—as opposed to an older Matthews, who has dealt with injury issues, a dip in production, and will be due for another payday in just two years.
Whether that will result in the Maple Leafs moving Knies remains unknown, but all the buzz around the league suggests Toronto could do quite well if they were to go in that direction.
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