The Toronto Maple Leafs‘ to-do list for the summer seems to be getting shorter and shorter. The offseason has seen a new GM, a new coach, the return of Mats Sundin, a new goaltender, a new top-pairing defenceman, a new top prospect, and a completely revamped bottom-six forward group. Tuesday saw changes made to the coaching staff, including the promotion of John Gruden.

A lot has been done, but a lot was required. The Leafs are better than how they ended the season. But are they the Stanley Cup contenders they billed themselves as during the Shanahan era? Arguably, they still need to put in work to be considered in the contender category, and plenty of work needs to be done to be considered favourites. Getting there might be a stretch, but it’s time to look at what could be remaining on the Leafs to-do list.

This might not be the most impactful item on the to-do list, but it is absolutely required. The Leafs coaching house is in order, but work still needs to be done at the AHL level, and as reigning Calder Cup Champions, there might be expectations.

The Leafs would be wise to focus on the players they want to develop in the AHL in the coming years and hire coaches who could fit with that group.

Bobrovsky and Stolarz worked out pretty well for Florida, and maybe that is the intent for the Maple Leafs as well.

At the same time, the Maple Leafs have a lot of areas they could still improve upon, and a $3.75 million backup goaltender might not be the biggest priority.

With Connor Ingram and Cam Talbot still available, the Maple Leafs could find an affordable backup or third-string option to slot in behind Akhtyamov if he is receiving a chance to test himself in the NHL.

It feels like the Maple Leafs have gone too far down this road for nothing to happen. Morgan seems to have made his peace with moving on, and a list of teams has been shared.

There are potential fits in San Jose, Anaheim, or Seattle that could work, but if the Leafs aren’t gaining cap space or someone who meets a lineup need, this could be punted down the road, and fingers will be crossed that Jim Hiller is the right guy to get Rielly back on track in Toronto.

A team can’t go from hunting Zach Werenski to doing nothing. There is an expectation that the Maple Leafs go big, and if that comes at the cost of Matthew Knies, Easton Cowan, Ben Danford, Colorado’s 2027 1st, or whatever, there is definite interest in taking a chance to compete now.

If it’s not going huge, a player like Oliver Ekman-Larsson could also factor into the equation, as could the previously mentioned Anthony Stolarz.

As for who is available, Elias Pettersson is a hard option to ignore.

The Leafs have added a lot to their bottom six forward group. Those moves have potentially bumped one, if not both, of Dakota Joshua and Steven Lorentz into the press box. Joshua especially offers the Maple Leafs a chance to clear out some cap space if they were to move on from him in a trade instead, and it is arguable the Leafs could get similar results out of Bo Groulx and Jacob Quillan for $1.7M as opposed to the $4.5M commitment to Joshua and Lorentz.

Assuming the Maple Leafs do find some cap space, players like James van Riemsdyk, Eeli Tolvanen, and Michael Bunting are still available.

If the Maple Leafs do make a move where they move on from Matthew Knies, the availability of Anthony Mantha might be important to factor in as well.

Beyond those players, there are some interesting options that could fit PTO situations as well, like Reilly Smith, Tyson Jost, Curtis Lazar, and Jonathan Drouin.

The Leafs are “dollar in/dollar out” when it comes to cap space, but they should be “player in/player out” when it comes to contracts as well. Toronto presently has four standard player contracts available, and they may need that flexibility in-season for waiver claims or adding via trade without having to send anyone out.

Some of these will take longer than others and have more of an impact but there is still a gap from where the Leafs are and where they need to be.

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