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4 hours ago
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The Toronto Maple Leafs know they'll have a big hole to fill on a wing.
Mitch Marner is on his way out, and he won't be able to be replaced by one player.
But the Leafs have been linked to a number of available wingers, and one is the former top rookie who is now an experienced veteran, Jeff Skinner.
Skinner just completed a season with the Oilers, but Pro Hockey Rumors projects him to sign with the Maple Leafs for a $2 million, one-year contract.
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"Skinner is coming off a tumultuous season with the Oilers, to say the least," PHR writes. "The former Calder Trophy winner ended his 15-year postseason drought this year, but was moved up and down the lineup through the regular season, leading to the second-worst point-per-game average of his career. Despite making the playoffs for the first time in his career, he was typically scratched by Edmonton, scoring one goal and two points in five games, averaging 12:13 of ice time per night. If he’s given a consistent role on a new team, there’s reason to believe Skinner can remain a quality tertiary scorer."
That's the main thing about Skinner: He can still score goals.
He has 373 in his NHL career, and he just had 16 in 2024-25 for the Oilers.
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If the Maple Leafs can pay Skinner a couple million to get another 16-20 goals, that'd be well worth it.
Skinner is still just 33 until the end of the 2025-26 season, so it might even be a chance at a late-career resurgence for Skinner with a fun team in Toronto.
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