After breaking down the Maple Leafs’ left and right wing depth charts, we now shift to two areas with fewer question marks in the center and goaltending positions.
Center
| Center |
|---|
| 1. Auston Matthews |
| 2. John Tavares |
| 3. Nicolas Roy |
| 4. Scott Laughton |
| 5. David Kampf |
| 6. Travis Boyd |
| 7. Vinni Lettieri |
| 8. Jacob Quillan |
| 9. Luke Haymes |
There’s no real ambiguity at center after GM Brad Treliving laid out the position this summer.
“I have used the analogy of Winnipeg. No team is perfect, but that is a pretty darn good team that won the President’s Trophy. When you look down the middle of the ice, you have Scheifele as the #1. On paper, you have Namestnikov as #2 and Lowry as #3, but again, it all comes down to deployment.
“When you look at our roster now, you have Nic Roy, who can take a lot of defensive heavy lifting with defensive-zone starts, defensive faceoffs, and matchups. When you put those into a pot, it allows you to not necessarily get lost on your 1-2-3 but spread out matchups and situational play that could free up different people when we talk about Auston, John, and Scotty Laughton.”
Provided John Tavares can remain productive — which I think is a good bet, but he’s about to turn 35, so it’s fair to question — this is the deepest center group the Leafs have entered a season with since Nazem Kadri was wearing the blue and white.
Auston Matthews is a true 1C, and Nicolas Roy is a prime-aged, prototypical 3C who can contribute all over the ice. Last season, Max Domi became the Leafs‘ de facto 3C, and while he is skilled offensively, he’s limited defensively. Domi’s unit became an extremely soft matchup line unit that struggled to accomplish anything against good teams, although they did pop a few times offensively against lottery opposition.
Scott Laughton had a rough go of things after he was acquired before the 2025 trade deadline, but I think he’s better than a 4C who barely produces. The Leafs need a proper plan for Laughton, though. They essentially deployed him as a pure checker between Steven Lorentz and an ineffective Calle Jarnkrok. He has more to give offensively, but he needs some linemates he can work with.
Overall, this center group is not only a more well-rounded unit, but it’s significantly deeper.
It’s easy to forget now, but in December, when Matthews missed time and the Leafs‘ center group was otherwise healthy, David Kampf was centering top-six forward lines. The now-departed Pontus Holmberg did as well at other points. Domi, last season’s 3C, isn’t even noted as a center on the list above. Now, it would probably take three center injuries to even contemplate elevating Kampf that high in the lineup, and potentially two to debate shifting Domi back over. There is depth and options.
Additionally, the Leafs‘ depth offseason moves didn’t receive much attention but are notable. Travis Boyd’s next game in the NHL will be his 300th. He is by no means a burner, but he can play in the league and chip in on the odd occasion. Vinni Lettieri has played 155 games in the NHL as well.
Last season, when injuries escalated quickly, the Leafs called up the too-green Fraser Minten. Connor Dewar was moved to center at points. Some potentially interesting young players in Jacob Quillan and Luke Haymes could earn looks at some point, but it would take a lot more this season to force the Leafs to bring players up before they are ready.
This is a deep and versatile group that the Leafs coaching staff can play around with depending on the situation. Everyone is slotted properly: Matthews anchors them at the top end of the depth chart; Tavares is a credible top-six center who can produce; Roy is a quality 3C, and Laughton is a good 4C. Kampf is solid — albeit pricey — depth at the moment. And they have depth beyond Kampf in the event they can shed his salary.
A final note on the forward group
The strength of the Leafs’ overall forward group is clearly up the middle, which is how an NHL team should want to structure its forward corps. There are 14 established NHL forwards — many of whom can play multiple positions — and the Leafs will have to mix and match to find the best combinations. A good chunk of the players are coming off trying seasons and should show up to camp with something to prove. How it plays out next season is anyone’s guess at this point, but there are enough quality NHLers on the roster that they should be able to find a successful alignment. The Leafs can afford to carry all 14 forwards, so they don’t have to make a move, but it wouldn’t be surprising to see them clear a contract or two, either.
Goaltending
| Goalies |
|---|
| 1. Anthony Stolarz |
| 2. Joseph Woll |
| 3. Dennis Hildeby |
| 4. Artur Akhtyamov |
The most notable development in net is that the Leafs have not signed a veteran hedge to be their third stringer by this point. Right now, it’s a very green group of two young goalies in Dennis Hildeby and Artur Akhtyamov.
There are a few options still on the market — most notably James Reimer, Ilya Samsonov, and Alexandar Georgiev. Each preseason, there is usually a collection of experienced goalies who end up on waivers, too, but the Leafs would have to keep the goalie up with the big club in the event they make a claim.
That’s really the biggest question, as both Anthony Stolarz and Joseph Woll are good, talented goalies. Neither has been able to stay healthy in their careers, so while they hedge each other nicely, it’d be ideal to have a third goalie the team can trust if/when one of Woll or Stolarz runs into injury trouble.
Anthony Stolarz is also entering a contract year, and while Woll has three years remaining on his deal, Stolarz was the preferred playoff starter when both were healthy. Therefore, Stolarz enters camp as the de facto number one. Between the two, the Leafs have good problems to sort through. It’s an excellent tandem.
Hildeby experienced a down year in 2024-25 and is still technically an RFA, so in theory, he’s not even on the team at the moment. Should they strike a deal with him, he will need to rebound in the AHL.
Akhtyamov produced a good rookie season with the Marlies overall, but he faded as the season went along. He will need to prove he is capable of handling a heavier workload this year.
Ideally, the Leafs would add a bit more insurance with their third-string goalie — it’s hard to trust that both Stolarz and Woll will stay healthy — but this is a strong group overall featuring talent, upside, and some promising prospects to boot.
