The Toronto Maple Leafs were reportedly interested in unrestricted free agent Jack Roslovic earlier this summer, and it appears the lure may not have gone away.
According to Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman on 32 Thoughts, there are still a few teams interested in Roslovic’s services, adding that the Maple Leafs are still attempting to move money around, potentially to bring the 28-year-old in.
“I’ve heard there’s still a few teams looking at him. He’s the best available player remaining, and obviously, he hasn’t found anything he 100 percent likes, but there’s definitely a few teams poking around there,” Friedman said.
“I’ve heard five or six, so he has to get to something he’s comfortable with, and we know with Toronto, they’re trying to move money around.”
Toronto’s reported interest in Roslovic first surfaced on July 6, with Friedman reporting that the right-shot forward would make sense for the Maple Leafs because of his past with Auston Matthews at the United States’ National Development Team.
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Roslovic was drafted by the Winnipeg Jets in the first round (25th overall) of the 2015 NHL Draft. He spent three seasons with the Jets before being moved to the Columbus Blue Jackets with Patrik Laine in January 2021 for Pierre-Luc Dubois.
After four seasons with Columbus, he was traded to the New York Rangers for a 2026 fourth-round pick. Roslovic then signed a one-year, $2.8 million contract with the Carolina Hurricanes last summer on July 4.
Roslovic has appeared in 526 NHL games, split between the Jets, Blue Jackets, Rangers, and Hurricanes, scoring 260 points (102 goals and 158 assists). The Columbus, Ohio-born forward tied his career-high of 22 goals this past year with Carolina, while also tallying one goal and three assists in nine playoff games.
The Maple Leafs have just $1.919 million in cap space, according to PuckPedia, and they'll need to shed some money if they want to sign Roslovic. Two players whose contracts could be moved out to make room are David Kampf or Calle Jarnkrok.
Kampf has two more seasons at $2.4 million and appeared in just one playoff game for Toronto this past spring. Jarnkrok was injured for the majority of the season, but returned to the lineup before the playoffs and played a key role on Toronto’s fourth line. He has one more year at $2.1 million.
The Maple Leafs are currently a team full of depth after acquiring Nicolas Roy, Matias Maccelli, and Dakota Joshua via trade. They also just re-signed Nick Robertson, however, reports suggest he could be on the move before next season begins.
It’ll be a fascinating month of August as the summer begins to wind down and players start to filter their way back into Toronto.
This article originally appeared on The Hockey News: 'They're Trying To Move Money Around': Maple Leafs Reportedly Haven't Closed Door On Signing UFA Jack Roslovic
(Top photo of Roslovic: David Kirouac / Imagn Images)
