Matthew Knies and the Toronto Maple Leafs have held conversations about a potential extension, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reports.

During an episode of 32 Thoughts the Podcast released Monday, co-host Kyle Bukauskas touched on the fact that Knies wore an ‘A’ during Saturday night’s preseason game against the Montreal Canadiens and asked Friedman why he felt that was significant.

“I’m wondering if they’re going to sign him. I think Knies is on the precipice of being a really long-term, important piece of the Toronto Maple Leafs,” Friedman said. “He’s heading into the last year of his ELC and I think there have been some conversations about it. I don’t know how much or in depth they’ve really talked about it, but there’s been some rumors that there have been some conversations.”

Knies is entering his sophomore season in the NHL and has taken significant strides in his development since joining the Leafs in the late stages of the 2022-23 campaign. He spent the vast majority of his rookie campaign on the top line alongside Auston Matthews and Mitch Marner where he demonstrated his 200-foot game and ability to be a factor regardless of where he was placed in the lineup. While he did struggle at times with the grind of a long season, Knies still had enough left in the tank to showcase his clutch factor, including the OT winner in Game 5 against the Boston Bruins to keep the Leafs’ season alive.

He finished the season with 35 points (15 goals and 20 assists) in 80 games while also adding three points (two goals and an assist) in seven playoff games against Boston. His strong chemistry with Matthews and Marner means Knies is most likely going to start the year on the top line and should therefore be able to increase his point production now that he is more comfortable with the pace of an 82-game campaign.

Friedman believes that the Leafs view Knies as a crucial piece of their plans based on the fact that he got the ‘A’, so it would be in their best interest to get an extension done sooner rather than later.

“There weren’t a lot of people they could have given it to, but they gave it to him,” Friedman said of Knies. “That says a lot about how they see him. And you know my rule: if you have a cornerstone player, and he’s 21 years old, then you go out and you sign them for as long as you can because the price never goes down.”

While it is unclear at the time of filing how productive the extension talks were and how close the two sides are to getting something done, the fact that the Leafs have already begun the process of re-signing Knies is an encouraging development nonetheless. He didn’t touch on the status of his expiring contract to reporters at the start of training camp but stressed his desire to remain with the organization while expressing his love for the city of Toronto.

Brad Treliving will certainly have a lot on his plate in the coming months due to numerous players needing new contracts. It sure seems like Knies is right near the top of his to-do list for extensions to get done.