Maple Leafs Could Face Penalties for Chris Tanev Extension, Reveals Frank Seravalli.
NHL insider Frank Seravalli has highlighted potential issues for the Toronto Maple Leafs regarding their extension talks with defenseman Chris Tanev. In a recent post on X, Seravalli discussed the NHL’s crackdown on Long Term Injured Reserve (LTIR) salary cap circumvention. This practice involves teams signing older players to lengthy contracts, intending only to play them for a few years before placing them on LTIR.
The NHL is particularly vigilant about “fake years” being added to contracts of players in their mid-30s. These extended terms are sometimes used to suppress the average annual value (AAV) or to attract signatures with higher total dollar amounts. If it’s proven that these contract years were added as a means of cap circumvention, the NHL plans to monitor and potentially penalize teams.
For the Maple Leafs, Seravalli explained how this could impact their negotiations with Tanev. If the Leafs were to offer Tanev a six-year contract at $4 million per year, but only intend for him to play for three years with the remaining years spent on LTIR, the NHL would scrutinize this deal. The league has encountered similar situations before, leading to the establishment of the 35+ contract rule.
Should the NHL determine that the Leafs engaged in cap circumvention, they could be forced to keep Tanev’s salary on their books regardless of his playing status. Additionally, the CBA expressly prohibits agreements for post-contract services, such as hiring a player as a team ambassador or in player development to circumvent the cap. Any such arrangement would be considered cap circumvention and would likely result in penalties.
Given this, the Maple Leafs must carefully assess how long Tanev will be a valuable asset on their playoff roster. If he isn’t expected to remain effective for five or more years, signing him to a lengthy and significant extension might cause more problems than it solves.
As of now, Chris Tanev has not signed his extension, indicating that the Maple Leafs may be taking this new information into account as they proceed with negotiations.