Tyler Toffoli
The Canadiens do not have a lot of luck signing unrestricted free agents. A recent story came out where Mike Hoffman was asked why he chose the Canadiens in free agency instead of re-signing with the St. Louis Blues and he simply said they offered more money.
That is always the case when it comes to playing in high tax and low temperature markets like Montreal. There are just so many reasons to sign elsewhere, that the allure of a hockey mad market does not always work. In fact, in a lot of cases it probably scares players off as they don’t want to be hounded at the supermarket about the team’s struggles when they are trying to find that perfect peach.
Tyler Toffoli is one recent exception to that rule. He chose to sign with the Canadiens in 2020 and inked a four year contract with a reasonable cap hit of $4.25 million. That certainly was not a massive overpay to lure him to Quebec, so why wouldn’t he want to come back again?
The team has really been searching for someone to play with Nick Suzuki and Cole Caufield since Toffoli left, so why not reunite the trio that was so good as the team made a run to the Stanley Cup Final?
Toffoli will be 32 this summer, making him a bit older than the ideal linemate for Suzuki and Caufield, but you know he fits perfect with them. He is currently scoring at a point per game pace with the New Jersey Devils after a career high 73 points with the Calgary Flames last season.
He would be a great fit on the top line and help this team take a big step forward next season.