Rumor: Leafs to get nothing for their pending UFAs

The Toronto Maple Leafs are in the midst of yet another strong season, proving that the rebuild is over and that they've evolved into a competitive team.

Because of that fact, the way they will handle pending unrestricted free agents has changed - they're not about to sell off such players before the trade deadline, unless the return is a top player.

Generally, soon-to-be UFAs are traded at the deadline by lottery teams for picks and prospects, so what does a team like Toronto do with James van Riemsdyk, Tyler Bozak, and Leo Komarov, among others?

According to The Fourth Period's David Pagnotta, the Leafs' management has made no progress in contract extension discussions with the aforementioned players.

Further to that, there is no expectation that any of these players get traded, as they all play an important role on the team and will be key components of a (hopefully) long playoff run.

"All three players love their time in Toronto and each of their preference is to re-sign with the Leafs, but those talks aren’t likely to pick up steam until after the season, by the sounds of things, and that’s okay," Pagnotta stated, based on his sources.

As is the case with several pending free agents around the league, we hear that they are committed to their current team and hope to strike a new deal - but money speaks volumes, and teams will be lining up for these players' services, and it might come down to the best offer, rather than loyalty to Toronto.

Either way - these players are very unlikely to be traded in-season. Should they sign elsewhere, they'll have been lost for nothing tangible... unless the team manages to bring home Lord Stanley's Cup for the first time since 1967.