We Now Know What it Will Cost the Leafs to Keep Michael Bunting

Michael Bunting has seen a lot of improvement with the Leafs lately. He has managed to maintain 20+ goals for 2 seasons in a row, he has seen a lot of success on the 2nd powerplay line. It appears that other teams are interested in Bunting, and they have listed their price.

Other Teams are Interested in Bunting

During a recent episode of Overdrive, Mike Johnson, an NHL analyst, joined in the conversation and discussed Bunting. He explained that other teams have shown interest in Bunting, Johnson believes that Bunting is currently worth a 6-year contract at $24 million. He expressed that other teams admire his versatility, and that he seems to be able to score on any line, which makes him valuable.




The issue is that Toronto is not interested in paying so much to keep Bunting, he hopes that the Leafs can get him on a 6-year 3 and a half million dollar contract. His explained that Bunting is proudly born in Toronto, and that perhaps the Leafs can sign him on a discount due to his love for Toronto.

Nick Paul is a good example of a player that signed a long term, discounted contract, with 7 years at $3.15 million. The Leafs might be interested in keeping their AAV down, which would be beneficial for their AAV if they can sign Bunting to a discounted contract.

It seems that the Leafs now know how much it will cost to keep Bunting, the question is, are they willing to keep him, if they are not keeping him, what team will pick him up?