- Max Domi is expected to miss training camp and the start of the season
- Toronto sits $2,752,382 over the salary cap with camp days away
- Read below for how LTIR relief changes John Chayka’s math
Max Domi is not going to be ready for training camp.
Leafs Morning Take host Nick Alberga reported Wednesday that Domi, still working his way back from offseason surgery, is expected to miss camp and the start of the regular season. Alberga added that there is “still lots of uncertainty” around where the recovery goes from here.
The club announced on May 25 that Domi was out indefinitely because of complications from a spring procedure. Toronto never said what the surgery was, only that it dealt with something he played through all of last season.
Steve Simmons of the Toronto Sun reported that the operation went badly wrong and left Domi unable to walk in the days that followed. He had chosen the surgeon himself instead of going through the Leafs.
Walking stopped being a problem weeks ago. Skating is the part nobody will commit to.
All of that lands on John Chayka’s desk. The Leafs are $2,752,382 above the ceiling according to PuckPedia, with camp about to open and no relief on the books.
| Toronto’s cap position | Space |
|---|---|
| Today, Domi on the active roster | -$2,752,382 |
| Domi’s cap hit | $3,750,000 |
| With Domi on LTIR once the season starts | $997,618 |
Parking Domi on long-term injured reserve wipes out the overage and hands Toronto just under a million dollars to work with. A team that expected him back quickly would not have built a roster this far over the line.
That is a full reversal from where this sat a month ago, when Domi walking around fine looked like it had cost the Leafs their cleanest cap exit. Wednesday’s report gives it back.
Domi is coming off 12 goals and 24 assists in 80 games, his second straight season short of 40 points. He turns 32 in March and is entering year three of a four-year deal carrying that $3.75 million hit.
Chayka gets his cap answer without having to trade anyone. Domi is the one paying for it.
