Brendan Shanahan has informed his Core Four about what’s coming this summer

The Toronto Maple Leafs have some tough choices to make thanks to their second-round elimination by the Florida Panthers. Right away, rumours emerged that the Core Four of Auston Matthews, Mitch Marner, William Nylander and captain John Tavares needed to be dismantled in order to acquire a No. 1 defenseman or a power forward. But it looks like team president Brendan Shanahan has a different plan in mind.

Chris Johnston reported that nothing has changed regarding Matthews’ intent to sign an extension with the Maple Leafs even though Kyle Dubas isn’t in charge anymore. He is currently waiting to see who becomes the new GM and what their vision will be for the future in Toronto.

Johnston however added that Shanahan told his top players that they likely won’t be moved. The plan is to return next season with those core forwards.

Everybody stays. Therefore, fans can forget about a monster trade that shakes things up or a major free-agent signing that can ensure a long Stanley Cup run next season.

According to Cap Friendly, the Maple Leafs have about $9.1 million in cap space for 2023-24 with 15 active roster players under contract. They’ll get additional cap relief of $5.625 million if Jake Muzzin remains on long-term injury reserve. But that will not be enough to make a big free-agent signing this summer.

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