On July 1st, Chayka went and brought in nearly an entire new bottom-six and effectively replaced whatever Jarnkrok brought to the table.
In 2022-23, Calle Jarnkrok signed a four-year deal with the Toronto Maple Leafs for 8.4 million, for an AAV of $2.1-million. After his four years were up though, he is absolutely not going to be brought back and was replaced in a flurry of moves by new general manager John Chayka.
Jarnkrok has been on the outside-looking-in for a while now, even though his contract and AAV were not substantial.
Over his career in Toronto, Calle Jarnkrok has played in 200 games and has scored 75 points, with a steady decline in production year-over-year.
With the soon-to-be 35-year-old now entering the twilight of his career, his place on the team is no longer secure, and the new general manager has replaced him with more skilled and younger players.
Five new bottom-six forwards arrived in a single summer
John Chayka was a busy man this offseason.
He acquired five new bottom-six forwards and essentially replaced the entire bottom six with players from free agency or trade.
He traded for winger/center Nick Paul from Tampa Bay, who is one of the largest hockey players in the NHL and also brings strength and speed.
And he also signed four free agent players, including a pair of right-handed forwards who do exactly what Jarnkrok does but better. Colton Sissons and Jack Roslovic are going to be playing on the right side of the lineup, with at least one of the two taking over as the center for the bottom six.
And on top of those two, they added Brandon Duhaime and Teddy Blueger to fill out the rest of the lineup.
Each one of these players is younger, provides nearly the same cap hit, with better defense, production, and versatility, and can actually be something other than, at best, a fourth-line center.
Chayka had to find a way to build out the bottom of a forward group that not only provides depth scoring, but also a chance to generate wins and fill roles on the roster.
There was no obvious place left for Jarnkrok to fit into in Toronto
Unfortunately for Jarnkrok, there was just no place left for him on the roster here in Toronto.
His skill set was diminishing, and he was getting older; outside of a tiny stretch of games, was very bad last season. He had six goals and two assists for eight points in 56 games played which was a career low across the board in per-game production.
Combine that with his only attribute being that he was a right-shooter, and it just left a lot to be desired. Replacing Jarnkrok for around the same price tag was substantially easier as well, and he's 34.
Guys like Roslovic and Sissons are both better than Jarnkrok and are worth the extra money spent on the upgrade, with a combined AAV of $8.25-million dollars a season.
On top of that, Jarnkrok did not provide enough despite being a veteran; his time was up in Toronto, and they moved on with this new management regime.
Which bottom-six Maple Leafs forward will have the most impact next season?
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