Maple Leafs step up and pay David Kämpf in Brad Treliving’s first roster move

NASHVILLE – Brad Treliving’s first roster move with the Maple Leafs as general manager: Signing David Kämpf to a four-year deal with an annual cap hit of $2.4 million.

The Leafs locked up the 28-year-old three days before he would have become an unrestricted free agent. They did so by offering Kämpf the security of a four-year deal in exchange for a slightly lower cap hit. Kämpf and his agent J.P. Barry were eyeballing a cap hit of $3-$3.5 million on the open market.

Among the comparables, in terms of cap hit, they saw for Kämpf were Brandon Tanev ($3.5 million), Barclay Goodrow ($3.6 million), and Colton Sissons ($2.8 million).

The deal is similar to the one the Leafs signed with Calle Järnkrok last summer (four years, $2.1 million cap hit), but with a slightly higher cap hit to account for the fact that Kämpf is younger and a centre who was bound to draw interest on a free agent market short on that position. That and a rising cap.

Kämpf has grown fond of Toronto and the Leafs over his two seasons and preferred to stay.

His last deal, for two years, came with a cap hit of $1.5 million.

Barry had been talking to Leafs assistant GM Brandon Pridham about a Kämpf extension since the beginning of last season. In short, this has been a long process. Most of those negotiations, however, came when the Leafs had Kyle Dubas as their GM.

Treliving replaced Dubas on May 31. He spoke to Barry about Kämpf and exactly four weeks later, the Leafs, with Pridham still overseeing the negotiations, finally arrived at an amount that convinced Kämpf to forgo the open market and stay.

In other words, the Treliving-led Leafs budged to get Kämpf to stay.

It’s an interesting bet, a low-risk bet, but a bet all the same.

Kämpf was the team’s No. 4 centre in last year’s playoffs – behind Auston Matthews, John Tavares, and Ryan O’Reilly.

Sticking Kämpf in that spot wasn’t a big deal when he was pulling down less money. It becomes a little less than ideal, however, when Kämpf is making $2.4 million annually. On those terms, Kämpf should be the Leafs’ full-time No. 3 centre. And to be fair, he was that for most of the past two seasons. The tricky thing is that Kämpf is probably a little underqualified on the offensive side of things to hold that position when it really matters.

As the Leafs No. 3 centre in the 2021 playoffs, playing almost 17.5 minutes a night, Kämpf did score a pair of goals but looked out of his depth offensively when he had William Nylander by his side. Playing 14 minutes a night in the postseason this past spring, Kämpf failed to score in 11 playoff games and finished with only three assists.

In 27 career playoff games, Kämpf has produced three goals and three assists.

He managed what was then a career-best 11 goals and 26 points in regular season No. 1 with the Leafs and followed it up with a career-best 27 points this past season. His 23 five-on-five points were eighth among Leafs, just behind Alex Kerfoot (24), playing slightly fewer minutes, and Järnkrok (29).

A third line built around Kämpf can succeed defensively, but will always lack for offence. Which puts even more pressure on the top two lines to produce, something they’ve failed to do consistently in the postseason.

Kämpf’s play-driving ability was at its very best when he had speedsters Pierre Engvall and Ilya Mikheyev on his wings. It was less pronounced last season, less effective that is, when Engvall was dealt and Mikheyev chose a new team the previous summer.

Leafs coach Sheldon Keefe could no longer assume that sticking Kämpf on the ice for a defensive zone draw would end with the Leafs playing offence, not like it once did.

Kämpf did find a connection with Sam Lafferty in the second round against Florida. In 37-plus minutes, the Leafs won the shot attempt (41-29), scoring chance (21-15), goals (4-2) and expected goals (54 percent) battles when Kämpf and Lafferty shared the ice.

The Leafs could conceivably pencil those two in for third-line duty together to begin next season.

Kämpf wouldn’t be back were he not a favourite of Keefe, the Leafs returning head coach. Keefe is a big fan of Kämpf’s smarts and dependability defensively. Kämpf logged more penalty-killing minutes than any Leafs forward and trailed only Mitch Marner when the Leafs were defending against an empty net.

The deal buys up his age 29, 30, 31, and 32-year-old seasons.

Kämpf’s return ensures that another piece from last season will be returning to the Leafs. Not quite a core piece but a somewhat prominent piece anyway from the last two playoff disappointments.

The only Leaf, for the moment anyway, signed longer than Kämpf (2027) is Morgan Rielly (2030).

(Top photo: Kevin Sousa / NHLI via Getty Images)

Stats and research courtesy of Natural Stat Trick, Hockey Reference, and Cap Friendly