John Chayka wasted little time making his mark on the Maple Leafs, landing Darren Raddysh in a sign-and-trade nine days before free agency even opened. Now, with Toronto’s defence receiving a huge upgrade, the focus turns to finding the right forwards to complement the roster ahead of free agency. The Leafs have around $25 million to work with and plenty of options to free up even more money, but they need to be careful not to overspend on long-term deals. With that in mind, here are four forwards the Maple Leafs should consider targeting when free agency opens.
Eeli Tolvanen
Tolvanen is a 5’10 right winger who was once a top prospect who never completely lived up to the hype. The 27-year-old forward was perplexingly placed on waivers by the Nashville Predators during the 2022–23 season. He was claimed by the Seattle Kraken and immediately found his place there, becoming a consistent ~0.5 ppg middle-six forward with solid defensive numbers.
He’s shown flashes of elite play, but he is 28 now and will likely be a career middle-sixer. Despite settling into a middle-six role, Tolvanen still possesses the tools that made him such a highly regarded prospect. He is a strong skater with above-average speed, and his shot remains one of his best weapons. Those traits make him a great fit for the Maple Leafs, who lack speed down the wing, as well as right-handed forwards.
As long as the contract is reasonable, Tolvanen would be a very solid pickup for Toronto and could easily put up multiple 20-goal, 40-point seasons in the Leafs middle-six.
Michael Bunting
This name may seem familiar to Leafs fans—Bunting was a mainstay in the Leafs top-six from 2021–23. He made a name for himself by excelling on the wing of Matthews and Marner, putting up 23 goals and 63 points in the 2021–22 season. Bunting, unfortunately, priced himself out of Toronto, though, as he walked in free agency to Carolina following the 2022–23 season.
He signed for $ 4.5 M x 4, which is a bit too much for a middle forward, but not enough to make the contract unmovable. As a result, Bunting bounced around the league throughout his contract, playing for four different teams in four years. He has scored around 0.5 ppg for the past four seasons, with a few outliers (55 points in 71 games in 2023–24).
Bunting fit in perfectly with Matthews and Marner and would undoubtedly slot in perfectly beside Matthews and McKenna, allowing the Leafs to have a more balanced middle-six. The hope would be for Bunting to be a 55-65-point winger who complements 34 and 72 perfectly, just as he did four years ago.
After bouncing around the league, Bunting likely wants to settle down for more than one season, and who knows, maybe he’d take less to return to Toronto. A reunion may seem unlikely, but if the price is right, bringing Bunting back could be one of the smartest value signings the Leafs make this summer.
Oliver Bjorkstrand
Bjorkstrand is a player that I have wanted the Leafs to acquire for quite some time now. After he was moved to Tampa at the 2024–25 trade deadline, it seemed like he was going to thrive as a Bolt. After all, he was a consistent 20-goal, 55-point winger with excellent underlying stats.
Despite this, Bjorkstrand never found a real fit in Jon Cooper’s system, regressing to just 12 goals and 30 points in 80 games. He was mainly used in a bottom-six role, and just as he began to adjust to Cooper’s system, he suffered a severe leg injury and missed six months.
Despite his disappointing stint with Tampa, I still believe Bjorkstrand can get back to the player he used to be. As a natural right winger, Bjorkstrand would fill one of the Leafs’ biggest needs while fitting right into the top-six. His down year should also lower his asking price, giving Toronto an opportunity to buy low on a player who has consistently shown he can produce at a 20-goal, 60-point pace.
Bjorkstrand is a good buy-low bet who still has a lot left to give at 31 years of age. If Toronto can capitalize on his down season, they could end up with one of the biggest bargains of the 2026 free-agent class.
Mats Zuccarello
Zuccarello and the Wild reportedly had a messy breakup, with the Wild playing hardball and refusing to pay him what he deserves (due to Kaprizov’s massive $17M x 8 extension). As a result of this, Zuccarello will be available in free agency, despite his desire to stay in Minnesota.
Zuccarello is turning 39 in September but is still producing at a remarkable rate for his age. He scored 15 goals and 54 points in 59 games for Minnesota this past season, nearly a PPG pace at age 38. His game has aged extremely well, as his exceptional hockey sense, vision, and playmaking ability have allowed him to remain an effective offensive player.
Although we can expect a slight regression come October, Zuccarello could still easily be a 65-point forward that slots in next to Matthews. Just like most of the names on this list, Zuccarello is a right winger and fits very well in the top-six. A one-year deal at a high AAV would be largely inconsequential for the Leafs, who have more than enough cap space to work with. On a short-term deal, Zuccarello would be a low-risk, high-reward signing with the potential to provide excellent value.
Concluding thoughts
The Leafs have plenty of money to work with in free agency, but with contracts continuing to skyrocket around the league, they need to be extremely careful not to hand out deals that will quickly become burdens. It already seems like they will be signing Bobrovsky to a large contract, which isn’t exactly ideal, but not the end of the world. If the Leafs want to contend next season, they need to avoid handing out another contract like the one Bobrovsky is reportedly seeking. If it were up to me, the lineup after today would look similar to this:
Bunting-Matthews-Nylander
Mckenna-Tavares-Bjorkstrand
Cowan-(empty)-Knies
Lorentz-Sissons-Joshua
Mccabe-Raddysh
Rielly-Tanev
Andrae-Ekman Larsson
Bobrovsky
Stolarz
Although there are still holes in this roster, there is now a solid framework for the Maple Leafs to build on. Hopefully, Chayka is able to identify talent for cheap, because the right value signings could be the difference between another disappointing season and a deep playoff run.
