Brown signed a one-year contract worth $4 million with the Oilers, who lost Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Final to the Florida Panthers. With Brown ready to become an unrestricted free agent, Siegel believes reuniting with the Maple Leafs makes sense.
“Edmonton will most likely try to bring Brown back next season. If the Oilers are unable to find the necessary cap space, the Leafs should consider reuniting. Brown had a tough regular season. He scored only four goals in 71 games. “It was his first year back after missing the majority of the 2022-23 season due to a torn ACL,” Siegel wrote in his June 25 story.
“There is reason to believe that the second year after the injury will go more smoothly. His postseason performance has suggested that possibility. He is also unlikely to shoot 3.7% again. Brown is expected to score 15-20 goals this season, particularly if he plays on one of the Leafs’ top two lines. The fact that Brown improved his game in the postseason should undoubtedly appeal to the Leafs,” Siegel added.
As Siegel writes, Brown is expected to try to re-sign with the Oilers and build on his playoff success.
Brown struggled during the regular season with the Oilers, scoring only four goals and eight assists for a total of twelve points in 71 games. Brown did, however, have two goals and four assists in 19 playoff games, totaling six points.
Brown’s Experience With the Maple Leafs
Brown was selected by the Maple Leafs with the 156th overall pick in the 2012 NHL Draft. Following his selection, he returned to the OHL’s Erie Otters and was chosen team captain.
The forward then spent parts of two seasons with the AHL Toronto Marlies before making his NHL debut on March 17, 2016, and became a full-time NHL player during the 2016–2017 season. Brown appeared in 82 games over three consecutive seasons before being traded to the Ottawa Senators on July 1, 2019.
Brown appeared in 253 regular-season games with the Maple Leafs from 2016 to 2019, scoring 43 goals and 56 assists for 99 points.
After three years with the Senators, he signed a one-year contract with the Washington Capitals, but his ACL was torn just four games into the season. He subsequently signed with the Oilers in the off-season and helped them reach the Stanley Cup Final.
The Maple Leafs have key free agents.
NHL free agency begins on July 1, and the Maple Leafs have several major pending unrestricted free agents.
According to CapFriendly, Toronto’s cap space is slightly over $18.8 million heading into the offseason. However, the Maple Leafs have only ten forwards, five defenders, and one goaltender under contract.
Toronto begins the offseason with two UFA forwards, Tyler Bertuzzi and Max Domi, four UFA defenseman, Joel Edmundson, T.J. Brodie, Mark Giordano, and Ilya Lyubshukin, and two UFA goalies, Ilya Samsonov and Martin Jones.
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