Maple Leafs target Toronto native in free agency.

The Toronto Maple Leafs have been able to take advantage of the fact that there are players from the Toronto area, or Ontario in general, that are willing to take a little less money to remain close to home and play for their hometown team.

The Maple Leafs are reportedly looking to take advantage of this very fact in the negotiations with forward John Tavares this summer, but as it turns out Tavares, a pending unrestricted free agent, isn't the only Toronto native that the Maple Leafs are hoping to sign in free agency.

A report from NHL insider David Pagnotta has now revealed that the Maple Leafs are targeting Washington Capitals forward Andrew Mangiapane this summer, with Mangiapane expected to hit the open market on July 1st.

Mangiapane is coming off of a 3 year deal he signed with the Calgary Flames, a deal that carried an average annual value and cap hit of $5.8 million per season, a significant price tag for his level of production. The veteran forward put up 14 goals and 14 assists for 28 points over 81 games this season and is likely looking at a substantially lower number on his next contract.

Speaking of the Calgary Flames, Mangiapane has another connection to the Maple Leafs on top of being from the city of Toronto, his connection to former Flames general manager and current Maple Leafs general manager Brad Treliving. The two men being very familiar with one another only lends credibility to this rumor, and it could very well be the case that Mangiapane is one of the names the Maple Leafs will look to add to round out their roster this summer.

The one downside here is that Mangiapane doesn't really fit Craig Berube's style as a smaller player at 5 foot 10 inches tall and 183 lbs, so I do wonder how much of a fit the two sides will really find here.

Should the Maple Leafs make this move? Let me know your thoughts in the comments.