NHL Rumor Mill – May 5, 2026
In today’s NHL Rumor Mill: the latest on Maple Leafs captain Auston Matthews and Stars winger Jason Robertson, and some suggested targets for the Jets.
THE ATHLETIC: Chris Johnston believes the Toronto Maple Leafs are on the clock with team captain Auston Matthews. The 28-year-old superstar center has two years left on his contract, but league sources say he still isn’t sure if he’ll be back in the fall.
Toronto Maple Leafs captain Auston Matthews (NHL Images).
Matthews has reasonable concerns over the Maple Leafs’ direction under new general manager John Chayka. The two are expected to meet within the next two weeks. Chayka said he’s not putting a deadline on the Leafs captain regarding his own intentions.
Johnston believes Matthews wants to see a roster meaningfully upgraded by trades and free-agent signings. Keeping the high-scoring center in the fold will be critical to the club’s plans to retool the roster rather than a full-fledged rebuild.
As great a player as Matthews is, the Maple Leafs won’t get full value for him in a trade. Johnston believes the best-case scenario would be a return comparable to the package of future assets the Vancouver Canucks received from the Minnesota Wild for Quinn Hughes last December.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Chayka faces a daunting task attempting to retool the Leafs this summer. Selling Matthews on his plans could be his biggest challenge.
If Chayka fails, he’ll have to peddle Matthews for the best return he can find, which won’t be easy given the latter’s no-movement clause.
Matthews will waive his clause if he wants out, but he will likely only have a handful of preferred destinations. The fewer he has, the harder it would be for Chayka to land a quality return.
Convincing Matthews to stay will be a far better option for Chayka than trying to move him for a return that won’t come close to being fair market value.
THE DALLAS MORNING NEWS: Lia Assimakopoulos reports Jason Robertson left a bit of uncertainty about his future with the Stars during his end-of-season media availability on Monday.
The 26-year-old left winger is due to become a restricted free agent with arbitration rights after completing a four-year contract with an average annual value of $7.75 million. He’s also a year away from unrestricted free-agent eligibility unless he signs a long-term deal.
Robertson acknowledged that it’s a business on both sides, but he’s optimistic. “It’s a business,” Robertson said. “I learned that four years ago. It’s not my first time.”
Assimakopoulos believes Robertson is due for a significant pay raise. She speculated he could seek an extension similar to teammate Mikko Rantanen’s eight-year deal worth $12 million annually.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Robertson lacked arbitration rights after completing his entry-level contract four years ago, giving Stars management the leverage in those negotiations. It’s a different story this time.
A lack of salary cap space further complicates things for the Stars, prompting speculation that they’ll shed salary to free up sufficient cap space to re-sign Robertson.
The Stars could peddle Robertson rather than making a cost-cutting trade or two that might weaken their roster depth. However, they would have difficulty replacing the offense he brings to their lineup.
THE ATHLETIC: Murat Ates recently looked at several types of players the Winnipeg Jets could target to upgrade their defense this summer.
One option could be free agency if they want to add a big, physical defenseman. Ates suggested e Carson Soucy, Andrew Peeke, and Connor Murphy as possible targets.
Another could be targeting a young RFA-eligible defenseman capable of more, such as Simon Nemec of the New Jersey Devils or Pavel Mintyukov of the Anaheim Ducks.
I dont know about Peeke and Murphy but Soucy is a 6/7 D at best at this time, And I have a hard time getting Nemec or Mintyukov out of their teams unless you pay with quality in return
How about Barzal even up for Matthews or Robertson. But either of the 2 would have to sign an extension. They get a good player with a reasonable contract in his prime. Isles get younger and would have to pay more to extend but they have cap room if Lee leaves and Palat is bought out which should happen.Is this afair deal for both teams?
I believe both Matthews and McDavid want to win so don’t believe they go to a team that has to give up a boatload of players to get them. I see them going for draft picks probably take 3 firsts to get either one. If Toronto or Edmonton trade either one for picks then they might as well trade Leon and Nylander for more firsts. Imagine a team with 7 first round picks over the next three years wow. Anaheim picked 6 times in first round over last 4 years and they are built for next 8 years.
Agree Obe, or a mix of draft picks and prospects. If they end up having to move Matthews, it is rebuild time for sure isn’t it?
Carolina could do it, the question is would they do it. Does Matthews fit in their style of play?
They took a swing at Rantanen so maybe. They have Dallas first this year and 2028. Plus their own next year and 2028. Plus some “OK” prospects, nothing too high end.
Maybe a guy like Jarvis who doesn’t have any trade protection if the Leafs want a player instead.
Can’t wait to see how the Robertson contract lands.
Dallas has about $11.1M in cap space for next year and has to sign or replace these forwards:
Robertson (coming off $7.8M)
Bunting ($4.5M)
Benn ($1M)
Bourque ($1M)
Even assuming the resign/replace Bunting, Benn, and Bourque all for league min deals around $1M, that only leaves $8M for Robertson.
I cant see him seeking less than $12-$14M.
So either Robertson goes somewhere else, or Dallas has to trade another key, expensive piece to fit him in.
Would they ever peddle Harley or Heiskanen in a cost cutting move?
foleyd7, if Nil does make a move like that, given his managing history you can bet it will involve the player whose departure will have the least effect on the overall roster … in his expert view … and that part of the return will be someone who has a better-than-even chance of eventually and effectively replacing the dear-departed.
How many teams have been a consistently highly competitive elite team in their Conference for 7 straight seasons?
This is more of a question as i don’t watch a lot of the leafs.
Looking outside in I wonder about Matthews and if he and or the team have a clear definition of who he needs to be and whether they have considered that in their support around him.
I look at Mcdavid…its clear who he is.
I look at Barkov, it’s clear.
But Matthews, are the leafs expecting him to be like Barkov and negate the other teams best…or score 60+ goals a year. I dont think it is reasonable to expect both. imo what ever direction you lean to would dictate the support that needs to be in place and the coaching deployment of him no?
And maybe this is all sorted idk