Dubas prepared for potential offer sheets for Leafs’ RFAs

With multiple players to sign and limited cap space with which to work, Toronto Maple Leafs general manager Kyle Dubas might face some competition from other clubs looking to poach one of his young stars.

Leafs forwards Mitch Marner, Kasperi Kapanen, and Andreas Johnsson are all set to become restricted free agents July 1. As RFAs, all three would be eligible to sign offer sheets from other clubs should they be presented with them.

Dubas is prepared for that eventuality.

"You have to be realistic. You have to look around and identify which teams have the (draft) capital, which teams have the cap space, and which teams have the combination of both," Dubas told Mike Zeisberger of NHL.com.

Any team that submits a successful offer sheet for an RFA must provide compensatory draft picks to the player's original club based on a predetermined league-wide scale, with larger salaries carrying heavier draft-pick compensation.

"We want to be prepared as much as we possibly can," said Dubas, adding that some teams are non-factors due to a lack of cap space, lack of draft picks, or both. "We don't want to leave ourselves exposed to the actions of an irrational actor in the marketplace, another team that has the ability to do something that's crazy."

The young GM hopes to prevent any such situation by signing his players in an efficient manner.

"As a management group, our focus has been on finding contract resolutions with Mitch and Johnsson and Kapanen," he said.

Marner, Kapanen, and Johnsson all had career years in 2018-19. Marner led the Leafs with 94 points, while Kapanen and Johnsson each reached the 20-goal mark.

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Blues’ Sundqvist will have hearing for boarding Bruins’ Grzelcyk

St. Louis Blues forward Oskar Sundqvist will have a hearing with the league after boarding Boston Bruins defenseman Matt Grzelcyk in Game 2 of the Stanley Cup Final, the NHL Department of Player Safety announced on Thursday.

The hit occurred with 2:03 to play in the first period, and Sundqvist was given a two-minute minor for boarding.

Grzelcyk was injured on the play and didn't return after logging 4:29 of ice time in the opening frame. The blue-liner is in concussion protocol and will not travel with the team to St. Louis on Thursday afternoon, Bruins head coach Bruce Cassidy confirmed.

The 25-year-old Sundqvist has not previously faced supplementary discipline through two full NHL seasons.

Following the contest, Bruins forward David Backes said he doesn't think the collision was "a hit that we want in our game."

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Marchand owns Bruins’ top-line struggles: ‘I wasn’t good the last 2 games’

Boston Bruins forward Brad Marchand is taking responsibility for his line's slow start to the Stanley Cup Final after the team's 3-2 overtime loss to the St. Louis Blues in Game 2 on Wednesday.

“We need to be better,” Marchand said of his line, according to The Athletic's Fluto Shinzawa. “Personally, I wasn’t good the last two games. We can’t be playing like that.”

The Bruins' top line of Marchand, David Pastrnak, and Patrice Bergeron has been productive this postseason, but through two games against the Blues, the trio has combined for just one empty-net goal, one assist, and a minus-7 rating.

Boston's top line has fallen off against the Blues at five-on-five compared to its production against previous opponents.

Opponent TOI CF% SCF%
Maple Leafs 45:01 53.85 54.35
Blue Jackets 44:13 52.22 43.24
Hurricanes 37:28 61.19 64.71
Blues 14:46 37.50 33.33

TOI= Time on ice
CF%= Corsi For (Shot attempt share)
SCF%= Scoring chance share

Marchand and Bergeron have also uncharacteristically combined for eight turnovers through the first two contests, contributing to the Blues' 16 takeaways.

“They just competed hard,” Marchand said. “They won a lot of battles in our zone. They have really good sticks. So they turn a lot of pucks over and created some offense off that.”

The Blues erased a pair of deficits en route to the victory, stealing home-ice advantage with Game 3 set for Saturday in St. Louis.

All advanced stats courtesy of Natural Stat Trick

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Backes thinks he’d be suspended if he threw hit like one on Grzelcyk

Boston Bruins winger David Backes wasn't a fan of the hit thrown on teammate Matt Grzelcyk in Game 2 of the Stanley Cup Final on Wednesday night.

Grzelcyk was visibly shaken up after taking a hit from behind by St. Louis Blues winger Oskar Sundqvist in the first period. The Bruins defenseman ultimately didn't return to the game, and Backes wasn't pleased with the situation.

"I don't think that's a hit we want in our game," Backes told The Athletic's Jeremy Rutherford. "It's from behind, elevated, into his head, into the glass. If that's a two-minute penalty, I think there's going to be a shortage of defenseman in this series by the end of it."

Sundqvist was given a minor penalty on the play, but the league is reportedly reviewing the incident for supplemental discipline, which Backes think he'd receive if he was the player to throw that kind of hit.

"That's something I think if I'm making that hit, I'm probably watching from the bleachers for a few, but we'll see what happens with their player," Backes said.

Backes does have a history with the league, as he's been hit with two suspensions since joining the Bruins.

Game 2 was a thoroughly physical affair, with the Blues out-hitting the Bruins 50-31.

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Backes thinks he’d be suspended if he threw hit like one on Grzelcyk

Boston Bruins winger David Backes wasn't a fan of the hit thrown on teammate Matt Grzelcyk in Game 2 of the Stanley Cup Final on Wednesday night.

Grzelcyk was visibly shaken up after taking a hit from behind by St. Louis Blues winger Oskar Sundqvist in the first period. The Bruins defenseman ultimately didn't return to the game, and Backes wasn't pleased with the situation.

"I don't think that's a hit we want in our game," Backes told The Athletic's Jeremy Rutherford. "It's from behind, elevated, into his head, into the glass. If that's a two-minute penalty, I think there's going to be a shortage of defenseman in this series by the end of it."

Sundqvist was given a minor penalty on the play, but the league is reportedly reviewing the incident for supplemental discipline, which Backes think he'd receive if he was the player to throw that kind of hit.

"That's something I think if I'm making that hit, I'm probably watching from the bleachers for a few, but we'll see what happens with their player," Backes said.

Backes does have a history with the league, as he's been hit with two suspensions since joining the Bruins.

Game 2 was a thoroughly physical affair, with the Blues out-hitting the Bruins 50-31.

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Bruins’ Grzelcyk exits Game 2 after hit from behind by Sundqvist

Boston Bruins defenseman Matt Grzelcyk was shaken up and forced to leave the game after a hard hit from behind by St. Louis Blues forward Oskar Sundqvist late in the first period of Game 2 on Wednesday night.

Grzelcyk was helped to the Bruins' dressing room by a trainer and his teammates and didn't return for the start of the second period.

Sundqvist was assessed a two-minute minor, which the Blues killed off.

Grzelcyk has been a steady piece on the Bruins' third defensive pairing this spring, averaging just over 17 minutes per night and chipping in seven points so far in the postseason.

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