Tyler Toffoli for 8 weeks, players surrounded by trading rumors

According to Sportsnet’s Jeff Marek, Tyler Toffoli may not want to rebuild in Montreal, and with the news that he will be out eight weeks after surgery to repair a hand injury, he’ll have plenty of time to think. about his future with the team and watch from the sidelines as major organizational changes are being made.

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Marek wrote, “Like [Brendan] Gallagher, if Habs rebuilt the model, would Toffoli want to be a part of it at this stage of his career? This is not what he signed up for when he joined Habs.” The suggestion here is that Toffoli signed with Canada as a free agent – and lost much less than he could have earned on the open market – because Canada would be a strong team. In his first season, they went all the way to the Stanley Cup Finals and lost to Tampa Bay Lightning. This season, things have changed dramatically.

Canadians fought very hard. GM has been fired and Jeff Gorton has become Vice President of Hockey Operations and is looking for a new manager. The team could get some pieces removed and players like defender Ben Chiarot will inevitably be moved. Toffoli has two seasons left on his current contract after this year at a cost of $4.25 million per season. It’s a movable contract that can give Canada something good in return.

What does Toffoli want?

It’s hard to see why Toffoli signed with Canada, and Marek’s suggestion that this might not be what he signed up for is probably just speculation. However, Toffoli is no longer young. At 29, he will be 32 when his contract expires and while not too old for another, may be too old to return home on another extension and he may want to find a home with a team that’s not a long way to being a successful team again.

At the very least, Canadians will see trading as an option. Toffoli has no trade protection in its contract. If Canadians get an offer they like, there’s nothing stopping them from making a deal.

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