TORONTO — For Bobby McMann, life in Toronto has probably never been better.
Top-line minutes with burgeoning ice time for the winger? Check. McMann’s 15:09 ATOI is fifth among Toronto Maple Leafs forwards.
The production to match it? Again, check. McMann, 29, is fourth in Leafs goals with 15 in 47 games.
And being part of a team on the rise? Check, check, check. Thanks in part to McMann’s uptick in production and energy, the Leafs have points in 12 of their past 13 games.
That’s why even with McMann’s impending status as an unrestricted free agent, he’s not that interested in testing the free-agent waters right now.
Monday, McMann was asked if he would be open to staying in Toronto.
“Definitely,” McMann told The Athletic. “It’s a great spot. It’s all I’ve ever really known, but I have no issues here.”
Crucially, however, McMann acknowledges he hasn’t thought much about what his next deal might look like. He doesn’t want his UFA status to serve as a distraction to the Leafs.
“I think we’re rolling right now, and I don’t want to mess with the mojo or anything,” McMann said. “I feel like things are going well for me and for the team more than anything, and that’s the most important thing.”
Depending on how you look at it, McMann is arguably the Leafs’ biggest UFA this offseason. Scott Laughton’s next contract is also an important piece of business for the Leafs to consider. Laughton has found his groove as a key piece for the Leafs on and off the ice this season. But Laughton is two years older than McMann and hasn’t produced at the same clip as McMann this season.
That’s what makes McMann’s next contract so interesting for Leafs management to consider.
Given his age, that next contract could end up being the largest and longest of his NHL career. McMann’s camp will be right to ask for a longer-term deal, which it likely is interested in. The years spent grinding away as an undrafted player in the WHL and the NHL, through the ECHL and up to being Auston Matthews’ current winger are about to pay off big time.
It’s believed contract talks with the Leafs and McMann’s camp are in the preliminary stages but have started on the right foot.
McMann is undoubtedly due for a raise on his $1.35 million AAV from the past two seasons. He is on pace to eclipse the 20 goals he scored last season.
As of late, McMann has come on strong for the Leafs. He has scored in the Leafs’ previous two wins, both of which were only by one goal. Each was among the biggest wins of the Leafs’ season.
It’s not just the increased offence that will help McMann’s contract talks. He has grown into the kind of player who can fit anywhere from the first line — where he’s currently playing — to the fourth line, where his size and energy are also valued.
Sure, if you’re the Leafs coaching staff, you’d probably like McMann to show a little more physicality to go with his 6-foot-2, 217-pound frame. The sample for McMann is also still relatively small. It’s easy to forget that despite being 29, McMann is only in his second season of playing exclusively in the NHL and not the AHL.
And in the playoffs last season, McMann struggled. He didn’t score a single goal and logged just three assists in 13 postseason games. All of that could work against McMann and his camp in contract negotiations.
But still, even though McMann is a late bloomer, he has shown consistent improvement season over season. And that’s what should matter in negotiations. Despite the longstanding belief that players tap out in terms of development around McMann’s age, he’s something of a unicorn. His uber-cerebral approach, size and youth in terms of NHL games played suggest further development is possible.
Though McMann wants to stay in Toronto, the threat of his hitting the open market should remain for the Leafs. The UFA class for next summer is not strong. McMann’s 15 goals this season currently sit seventh among UFAs. If you take Alex Ovechkin off that list — his future feels like it could be either in Washington or outside of the NHL — and then add a possible new contract for the recently traded Kiefer Sherwood in San Jose, the pool of available UFA goal scorers thins further.
Among those top seven goal scorers, McMann’s current cap hit is the lowest.
Add it up, and even if McMann is due a raise, he still seems like a player who could draw interest via free agency.
That is, if he even gets that far. As of Monday, it sounds like he won’t.
McMann is where he wants to be. How much he produces over the rest of the season could determine how long and how costly his next deal might be for the Leafs.
“We get treated great,” McMann said of playing in Toronto. “The city’s awesome; I love the fans. I’d definitely be open to staying.”