NHL Rumors: Leafs Have Not Exchanged Contract Numbers With 2 Key Free Agents

NHL Insider Chris Johnston is reporting that talks between the Toronto Maple Leafs and their two key impending free agents, Jack Campbell and Ilya Mikheyev, have not reached the point yet of exchanging contract numbers. 

On TSN's Insider Trading segment on Tuesday, Johnston expressed some surprise that the Leafs would be letting the situation drag on as it has, considering how crucially important Campbell, in particular, is to the team's immediate future.

The Leafs have yet to have free agent discussions with Jack Campbell and Ilya Mikheyev. 😰 https://t.co/LXOJC4hkJl pic.twitter.com/gszMm70yD4

— theScore (@theScore) June 21, 2022

"What stands out to me is that they haven't actually done any negotiating at all with those players. Certainly, there's ongoing dialogue and discussions with the camps of those guys, but no numbers exchanged. No real back and forth there."

Mikheyev, says Johnston, will be looking for about somewhere between $4-$5M on the open market, while Campbell could potentially "go north of that, depending on where the goalie market goes."

The 27-year-old Mikheyev scored a career-high 21 goals this season with the Leafs, including four shorthanded and four on the power play, in about 15 minutes per game.

Campbell emerged as an All-Star caliber goaltender this season, and went 31-9-6 with a 2.64 GAA and a .914 save percentage. In his combined 2+ years with the Leafs, he's 51-14-9 with a 2.50 GAA. He had a strong showing in the playoffs as well this season, and has proven himself as a legitimate star in this league. 

Photo Credit: Eric Hartline-USA TODAY Sports