Off the wall suggestion, but something that could add punch to the Kings lineup and be a good shakeup in the offseason.
As a local, I laugh at all the Leafs fans who dont think they are in cap trouble.. Leafs have $71.909 committed to 14 players, with some major implications. If the cap goes to $83m it still only leaves them $11 mil, add on that Horton will be LTIR which adds another 5.3. This gives them likely a total of $16.3m with still only 14 players signed.
For D they will have Reilly, Muzzin, Zaitsev, Dermott and Holl. Ozhiganov is RFA and Gardiner, Hainsey are UFA. Hainsey is cooked and Gardiner will be severely overpaid. I imagine the D could be solidified with either Liligren or Sandin taking a spot, possibly both, but a cheap vet D add may be needed.
Bigger problem comes up front - Matthews, Tavares, Nylander, Kadri, Hyman, Brown, Marleau, T.Moore and Gauthier are all signed. Lindholm is a UFA while Marner, Kapanen and Johnsson are all RFA's. Marner is likely going to ask for Matthews money, Leafs will counter and it probably ends up between 9.5-10.5... that still only leaves $5.8-$6.8 in cap space. Adding the necessary 2 additional D will take away at the minimum between $1.5-$2.0. That cap space can be gained by trading Brown (2.2) for picks. Marleau (6.3) has a NMC and Zaitsev is likely a tough sell without major assets.
Assuming the Leafs find themselves in this spot, would it not be worthwhile for the Kings to offer sheet both Kapanen and Johnsson 4yrs x $4mil. At worst its reject and the Leafs are in a bad spot. At best, Kings add quality forwards on cheap contracts while only giving up a 2nd for each. Maybe its far fetched but I think worth exploring if that time comes. Both guys offer speed, offensive creativity and scoring. Kapanen is an exceptional penalty killer with great defensive zone work and can muck it up. Johnsson plays up and down the lineup, will not hurt you defensively either, not as physical as Kapanen though.
