Max Domi has had a rough start to his offseason. It was reported about a week ago that Domi will be out long-term. This came as a bit of an unexpected turn, as Domi was getting back surgery. Unfortunately, something went wrong, and due to complications from surgery, Domi might not be ready for next season. He had trouble walking after the procedure.
With this in mind, the Leafs could be without one of their main middle-six forwards to start the 2026–27 season.
This affects the Leafs in many different ways. Do they need to acquire a replacement? Does this diminish his trade value? Or does it provide an opportunity for someone else out of training camp? Let’s review it all below.
Should they bring in a replacement?
If Domi is going to miss a decent amount of time, the Leafs might have to find a Domi replacement. Although he is coming off a rough season, it still raises some questions going into the offseason. The Leafs would have the options of replacing him with a UFA, RFA, or a player from the Toronto Marlies. With the news coming out before free agency, I could see them going down that route for an alternative.
Looking at some potential UFA targets, there are veteran options such as Anders Lee, Jason Dickinson, and Boone Jenner. All of these could benefit the Leafs, given their experience and history of leadership. Out of these three players, I think the Leafs could target the likes of Dickinson or Jenner. In my opinion, Lee is a bit too old and will likely be the most expensive. If not for these three veterans, the Leafs could look at some more affordable options. Erik Haula, Colton Sissons, and Kevin Stenlund would be other ideas for a middle-six centre.
If there is no desire to bring in a UFA, I could see the Leafs targeting a couple of RFAs. The main ones that I would target are Barrett Hayton, Connor McMichael, and Jack Drury. All three of them are on the younger side and still have some good potential. I would like Hayton the most, as I think he will fit in the best and could be the least expensive. McMichael could be a bit more of a pricey option, but would easily be the most skilled option. Drury is a potential backup option if the Leafs cannot find anyone else.
How do you think management should handle the situation?
This diminishes Domi’s trade value
With all due respect, I do not think Domi has much trade value at the current moment, even when he is healthy. The chances of the Leafs making a good move for him were unlikely before, but now they may be impossible. The veteran forward has certainly fallen off a bit as he has gotten older, but at one point, he was a solid second-line player. Now, with an offseason complicated by injury, who knows what Domi will be like when he is back on the ice?
Domi is currently entering the third year of his four-year contract, making an annual salary of $3.75M. This contract honestly is not all that bad in terms of money; it was just the length that really caused some question marks. Throughout the entire deal, Domi has a 13-team no-trade clause, meaning that he cannot be traded to the teams on that list. That would make a trade situation even tougher, as that is nearly half of the teams in the league.
As Domi enters his fourth season as a Leaf, I think that we have already seen his best. Hopefully, I am wrong, but I do not see them being able to move on from him this summer.
A better opportunity for young players
The freeing up of a middle-six spot means that there is a chance for a young player to step in for a while. Leaf fans have already seen Easton Cowan make his mark at the NHL level, and they will also likely see Gavin McKenna play in that group early on next season. There may be a spot open going into training camp, so some Marlies will get the chance to jump into the NHL.
The main options I could see out of training camp are Jacob Quillan, Bo Groulx, Luke Haymes, or maybe even Miroslav Holinka. All three of Quillan, Groulx, and Haymes saw some NHL action last season. The most impressive out of the three was Groulx, surprisingly. He had bounced around between the AHL and NHL with the Anaheim Ducks, but really broke out once he joined the Leafs organization. Through 13 games, Groulx scored three goals and five points while playing in the Leafs bottom-six.
Out of these players, Quillan and Haymes are probably most likely to secure a spot out of training camp. They are both under 25 years old and have played their way up through the NCAA and AHL. They are probably the most ready for the next step. Yes, Groulx was fairly good in what we saw last year, but at 26 years of age, he has probably hit his ceiling.
A last and very interesting option could be young rookie Miroslav Holinka. The Czech forward played with the Edmonton Oil Kings last year, posting 80 points in 59 games. After their playoff elimination, Holinka joined the Marlies and got to make his AHL debut. The forward recorded an assist on an Alex Nylander game-winning goal against the Syracuse Crunch.
Out of these players, who would you want to see replace Domi out of training camp?
I’m sorry for Max Domi’s personal challenges but, as far as the Leafs, Domi needed to go, now he can’t. He’s never been a good center and part of it is he’s poor defensively. He was second worst at -29 while Tavares was 3rd at -28! When 2 of the 3 top centers on a team are poor defensively, there’s a huge problem. They can’t be given the excuse that the team was worse defensively because those 2 have always been bad defensively! Both of these players should be wingers at this time in their careers.
The approach should be think of Domi only as a winger and plan accordingly to fill centers with other players. Ideally, the Leafs acquire a 3rd center who has the potential to be a 2nd. They play 3rd mostly next season and within 1-2 years are good at 2nd hopefully. Minten could have been that guy but anyway…they MUST have a new 3rd or 2nd center before the season starts! Groulx may be NHL ready next season for 3rd or 4th center. The Leafs could need to act (not-Treliving-like) if Groulx isn’t turning out.