It is the best course of action to keep elite starting goalie Juuse Saros around and extend him. An extension will come in time, but until it does, any team in need of better goaltending has their eye on the Nashville Predators.
One of the teams that has been in the rumor mill surrounding Saros is the Toronto Maple Leafs. Both Ilya Samsonov and Martin Jones are UFAs and Joseph Woll is signed for just one more year at $766,667 AAV before becoming a RFA.
The Maple Leafs seem to be set on Woll being the goaltender of the future and he's shown great stuff to this point in the NHL with the team. Sticking to their guns, it looks like Toronto is closing in on an extension to keep Woll around for multiple more years at a much higher AAV.
This, in turn, takes the Maple Leafs out of the running for Saros and yet another team that has found their solution in net for at least one more season. Saros is a goalie who starts 55+ games and Woll isn't a backup at this point in his career. Having both makes little sense, especially with the price Toronto would have to pay for just one season of Saros if he's even available to be traded for, which he likely isn't with the direction of the Predators.
Kevin Weekes was the first to report that it looks like the extension for Woll will come in at three years and around $3.5-$4 million AAV and be confirmed on July 1, the earliest the contract can be locked in.
While this should take a team out of the running for Saros this summer, there is also no knowing exactly what could happen with the Predators this offseason. There is so much money to be spent and Saros isn't in a rush to sign a deal before seeing what Igor Shesterkin's number comes in at with the New York Rangers for a comparable.
Related: Juuse Saros' Camp Potentially Waiting for Shesterkin Deal Before Signing With Predators
There are likely still a number of teams that have and will continue to check in with the Predators on the availability of Saros as the offseason drags on and even into the 2024-25 season. Saros is going to require a big raise from his $5 million AAV and in terms of the Maple Leafs still going for him after reportedly having a deal in place with Woll, that's too much for Toronto to spend on netminding with the "Core Four" and others pieces to form a competitive team this offseason.
I strongly believe that the Predators will either be able to extend Saros at one point or he will become a free agent next July 1. It is too big of a loss to move on from a goalie in his prime when the team is only going to get better and compete for a Stanley Cup again.
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