On June 30, the Toronto Maple Leafs decide to extend the contract of defenseman Timothy Liljegreen, who is a pending free agent, and give him a qualifying offer prior to his free agency.
But, Toronto could still make a move during the rest of the offseason to acquire Liljegren. Chris Johnston of TSN thinks that even though the player recently inked a new contract, a trade is still possible.
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“They still plan to sign a few more players in free agency who fit this description of depth players. We’ll see how the situation involving [Nick] Robertson plays out. “We’ll see if Timothy Liljegren might still be traded,” Johnston stated during The Chris Johnston Show’s July 1 broadcast. “Although he signed a two-year extension, you can’t rule out a trade in his current situation completely, in my opinion. They will not stop working to improve the roster.
Liljegren signed a two-year, $2.8 million contract in 2024, and during the NHL draft, rumors of a possible trade were circulating. The defenseman signed a new two-year, $6 million contract, so it didn’t happen.
In a July 4 episode, Johnston expanded on his initial report regarding a possible trade of Liljegren.
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If the right deal came along, they would consider moving Kampf, Jarnkrok, or Timothy Liljegren. To be very clear, I do not believe they are trying to get rid of them at all; rather, I believe they are pretty tightly wound due to the Leafs’ salary cap. The blueline actually looks different at this stage of the off-season; they have clearly made adjustments in goal. However, I believe they will need to think outside the box to handle any future adjustments they wish to make, Johnston added.
Opening the Door for a Liljegren Trade with Maple Leafs
Liljegreen has had a very busy few weeks leading up to July 1, which marks the beginning of free agency.
Joshua Kloke of The Athletic revealed in an article dated June 12 that there had been no communication between Liljegren and the Maple Leafs between the conclusion of the regular season and the date of publication.
Kloke wrote, “It appears that there hasn’t been much communication regarding Liljegren’s next contract between the Leafs and his camp.” The Leafs probably want to wait and see how free agency plays out. They will be able to determine Liljegren’s position in their lineup once they have an idea of the kind of pieces they can add.
As per @FriedgeHNIC, Timothy Liljegren has inked a two-year, $6 million contract extension with the Maple Leafs.
4:57 p.m. · June 30, 2024, 815 Response
Liljegren’s two-year extension was announced by Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman on June 30, the day before free agency opened. Shortly after Friedman’s report, the Maple Leafs organization formally declared that they had extended a qualifying offer to Liljegren.
Leafs PR · Follow @LeafsPR for more updates.
Timothy Liljegren, Alex Steeves, Conor Dewar, and Nick Robertson have all received qualifying offers from the @MapleLeafs.
Noah Gregor did not receive a qualifying offer from the team.
5:08 PM · June 30, 2024, 1457 Answer
However, Liljegren’s new contract has no trade protection, as reported by Jonas Siegel of The Athletic on June 30, which fuels the rumors of a possible trade.
The source claims that Liljegren’s new contract has no no-trade protection. According to Siegel, the Brad Treliving front office isn’t exactly infatuated with Liljegren just yet.
Liljegren intends to remain in Toronto.
In the 2017 NHL draft, Liljegren was selected by the Maple Leafs with the 17th overall pick. He has accrued 65 points for the team in 196 games played, including 14 goals and 51 assists. Additionally, Liljegren has made 13 postseason appearances through 2024.
After his new contract with the Maple Leafs officially began on July 1, the team made Liljegren available for a video conference with reporters. After signing his extension, he stated that he hoped to continue playing hockey in Toronto.
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“I feel wonderful. I’m glad we were able to make it happen because Toronto has always been my dream location. Speaking with Toronto was not too difficult, according to Liljegren. “I think I made some significant progress last year, but my injuries caused me to kind of go off course. I was a little unlucky to lose some games because of two big ones. However, I continued to improve offensively.
Liljegren finished the 2023–24 Maple Leafs season with three goals, twenty assists, and a total of twenty-three points from 55 games. In six postseason games, he contributed one point (an assist).
During the 2024 season, the defenseman set or surpassed his career highs in points (23), assists (20), average time on ice (19:40), and blocked shots (116).
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