It’s almost August and NHL free agency is as over as “hawk tuah.” That being said, like hawk tuah memes, NHL free agency never fully goes away and with few hockey things of substance to talk about at this time of year, looking at the depths of who is left is an inevitable activity for a hockey site.

So with that spirited lede, let’s talk about Sammy Blais and what he could bring to the Maple Leafs.

The past couple of seasons have seen the Leafs lean on professional tryouts to find some additional fourth line depth in Toronto. Zach Aston-Reese was the 2022-23 guy, and Noah Gregor carried the torch in 2023-24. Neither player went on to do anything overly substantial for the Maple Leafs but they were affordable depth that brought physical play to the Maple Leafs lineup. Sammy Blais is that as well.

Sammy Blais comes with another selling point. He’s been Craig Berube’s depth guy. Most of Blais’ career has been played for Berube but comes with the caveat of Berube not seeing him as an every night player and not getting a ton of minutes. The fact that Blais is still available might mean that no one has a better situation to offer Blais and the best fit is with the coach who has seen his value.

The thing that stands out about the 6’2 Blais is the hit count. The next thing that should stand out is that he’s been fairly disciplined and hasn’t taken bad penalties to make up for being outmatched against opponents. Actually, that’s all we are really talking about when it comes to Blais. He didn’t kill penalties, he’s not a secret defensive wizard and there isn’t some untapped offence that is yet to be discovered. Bringing in Blais is a commitment to hitting and thinking that he could be a cheap platooning option for when Ryan Reaves is out of the lineup or Toronto wants to make a point that they are finishing their checks on their opponent.

No stealthy speed or booming slapshot. It’s all about the hits. On the other hand, his 2022-23 performance with the Blues was strong enough to earn him a spot on the World Hockey Championship roster, where he scored 6 goals/8 points in 10 games, following a 31 game 9-goal/21-point finish to the year in St. Louis after a disastrous start to the year in New York. In the right situation maybe there is a something to Blais, who also did have his best 2023-24 results before Berube was fired.

Even with the Berube factor it seems difficult to make a case for Blais as an NHL regular. I’m not sure you can bring in Blais and say “boom, he’s an NHLer” at this point in his career. He needs to accept a bit more of a hybrid NHL/AHL role and that is probably where the need is for the Leafs. With Kyle Clifford’s time on the Marlies behind him, and majority of the Marlies so far leaning towards addressing their skill deficit from last season, Blais would be a fit and a comforting depth option for Berube to lean on when injuries hit the bottom part of the NHL lineup.

The catch there is whether Blais is ready to accept being an AHL player part of the year and would he clear waivers to get there. The later he remains a free agent might answer the first question as well as hint strongly at the answer to the second. And in the event he is claimed, somehow life would go on in Toronto. Toronto could do a slight overpay (not his $1M contract from last season, but above the league minimum) if they wanted to ensure he’d clear waivers, possibly a $100k signing bonus for early October like what was done with Martin Jones, though I’m not sure he’s that much of a priority.

I’m not sure there’s really a ringing endorsement to give Blais but he is an option to be curious about given Brad Treliving’s desire to making the Leafs bigger and meaner, and Berube’s familiarity with him. That familiarity could also go the other way on Blais and given how the last couple of seasons went with the Blues, Berube might have a desire to leave his former roster behind him.