The vibes surrounding the Toronto Maple Leafs have shifted considerably since the final whistle of the 2025-26 season.
Following an off-season of significant change, the Leafs have a renewed sense of optimism entering the 2026-27 campaign after coming off one of the most disappointing seasons in franchise history.
From being just one win away from reaching the Eastern Conference Final in 2025, the Maple Leafs finished last in the Atlantic Division with 78 points and a 32-36-14 record, breaking a streak of nine straight postseason appearances.
“It’s disappointing this season,” Craig Berube said after a season-ending loss to the Ottawa Senators in what would be his last game as head coach of the Maple Leafs. “I guess that’s the focus, really, looking at everything. Didn’t live up to expectations.”
General manager Brad Treliving was fired before the season even ended as many questioned the franchise’s leadership after a few testy media interactions from Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment president and CEO Keith Pelley.
It even got to the point early in the off-season where captain Auston Matthews’ future with the Maple Leafs was in doubt despite having two years remaining on his contract.
The first order of business in the off-season was finding a new general manager. It’s safe to say the Maple Leafs went a direction nobody saw coming.
On May 3, the Maple Leafs announced the hiring of John Chayka as the team’s 19th GM in franchise history as well as the addition of Leafs legend Mats Sundin to serve as the senior executive adviser of hockey operations.
Chayka, 37, hadn’t work in the NHL since his uninspiring run as general manager of the Arizona Coyotes from 2016 to 2020 when he was in his late 20s, ending with a suspension by the NHL for breaching his contract and engaging in “conduct detrimental to the league and game.”
Despite the questionable hire, Pelley insisted Chayka was the right man for the job during an introductory news conference.
“We’ve done extensive due diligence, and I’m confident in where we landed,” Pelley said. “We were incredibly impressed and encouraged by his vision that he shared during the process. He’s methodical, and he’s measured.”
Chayka’s time in Toronto got off to a lucky start as the Maple Leafs won the NHL Draft Lottery just a day after he was officially hired to run the team.
After losing seven straight games to close the season, the Leafs dropped to fifth-last in the NHL, giving them an 8.5 per cent chance of winning the lottery for the second time in franchise history.
On June 26, the Maple Leafs used the No. 1 pick to select Penn State winger Gavin McKenna. He’s projected to play on Toronto’s top line with Matthews as early as this season.
“I got the chance to spend time with Gavin in Whitehorse, and he is a unique player and person,” Chayka said on draft night. “It is an amazing story. He never had a skills coach until he was 13. He didn’t have a skating coach until he was 13. He was not in the gym until he was 15. It is that Canadian story of being out in the rink, love for the game, and passion for the game. His unique ability to break down the game and create offensive chances is special.”
Aside from drafting McKenna, Chayka was very busy in the month of June, replacing the fired Berube with Jim Hiller as the team’s 41st head coach in franchise history after an extensive search.
Like his own hire, the addition of Hiller, who was bench boss for the Los Angeles Kings for nearly three seasons before being fired in March, was not expected.
The 57-year-old was an assistant for the Leafs under Mike Babcock for four seasons from 2015 to 2019.
“It was clear that the players who had been around him really valued who he is as a person,” Chayka said of the vetting process. “They really felt like they could trust that he had their back. They felt like he was committed to making them the best versions of themselves and that he was a coach who would be player-centric but also a coach who coaches. He pushed. He wanted the best out of people, and he created an environment that brought that out.”
Chayka wasn’t shy in reconstructing the roster as well.
The Maple Leafs completed a sign-and-trade deal with the Tampa Bay Lightning to acquire star defenceman Darren Raddysh, who was coming off a career-season with 22 goals and 48 assists. He became the team’s highest-paid defenceman with a cap hit of $8.5 million under his new eight-year deal.
Chayka also added up-and-coming blueliner Emil Andrae from the Philadelphia Flyers in a deal that saw goalie Joseph Woll and defenceman Semon Benoit go the other way.
On July 1, the Leafs found their new starting goalie, signing veteran Sergei Bobrovsky to a three-year, $21 million contract.
The 37-year-old won back-to-back Stanley Cups with the Florida Panthers in 2024 and 2025. In Toronto, he reunites with Anthony Stolarz, his tandem partner during the 2023-24 season.
“Sergei’s a real game changer for us in terms of the stability, the consistency, the durability,” explained Chayka. “Obviously the resume speaks for itself. [He] possibly ends up being the best in that position of all time. To be able to secure a player like that for this team that’s looking to break through, we feel like it was the right player at the right time. Not just on the ice but certainly off the ice, the mentorship, the professionalism, the championship pedigree.”
Toronto also acquired former Maple Leafs playoff killer Nick Paul in a trade with the Lightning while also signing a slew of depth players, including forwards Jack Roslovic, Colton Sissons, Teddy Blueger and Brandon Duhaime.
The Maple Leafs’ roster will have a different feel to it next season – especially in the bottom six - as we look at their projected lineup for 2026-27.
Bold = New Player
Forwards
Gavin McKenna – Auston Matthews – Matthew Knies
Easton Cowan – John Tavares – William Nylander
Nick Paul – Colton Sissons – Jack Roslovic
Dakota Joshua – Teddy Blueger – Brandon Duhaime
Extra: Zack MacEwen, Steven Lorentz, Max Domi (Injured)
Defence
Morgan Rielly – Darren Raddysh
Oliver Ekman-Larsson – Emil Andrae
Extra: Troy Stecher
Goalie
With a new coaching mentality, fresh faces across the lineup and the belief a healthy Matthews will return to peak form, hope has seemingly returned to Leaf Land after a deflating 2025-26 season.
Time will tell if it will be enough to get the Maple Leafs back to the playoffs as they search for their first Stanley Cup since 1967.
Signings
Darren Raddysh (D): Eight-year, $68M
Sergei Bobrovsky (G): Three-year, $21M
Colton Sissons (F): Two-year, $8.5M
Jack Roslovic (F): Two-year, $8M
Brandon Duhaime (F): Three-year, $7.8M
Teddy Blueger (F): Two-year, $5M
Gavin McKenna (F): Three-year, $3.225M (Enty-level)
Emil Andrae (D): Two-year, $3.1M
Troy Stecher (D): Two-year, $2.7M
Zach MacEwen (F): Two-year, $1.75M
Henrik Rybinski (F): Two-year, $1.75M
Cole McWard (D): Two-year, $1.75M
William Villeneuve (D): Two-year, $1.75M
Vinni Lettieri (F): One-year, $850K
Samuel Hlavaj (G): One-year, $850K
Ryan Tverberg (F): One-year, $850K
Jacob Quillan (F): One-year, $850K
Trades
June 16 - Acquire goalie Samuel Ersson, defenceman Emil Andrae and a 2026 third-round pick from Philadelphia Flyers for goalie Josheph Woll and defenceman Simon Benoit.
June 19 - Acquire defenceman Darren Raddysh from Tampa Bay Lightning for a 2026 fifth-round pick.
June 26 – Acquire 2027 fifth-round pick from Ottawa Senators for goalie Samuel Ersson.
June 27 – Acquire two 2026 third-round picks for defenceman Brandon Carlo.
July 1 – Acquire 2028 fourth-round pick from Pittsburgh Penguins for forward Nicholas Robertson.
July 1 – Acquire forward Nick Paul from Tampa Bay Lighting for goalie Dennis Hildeby, a 2028 third-round pick and a 2027 fourth-round pick.
