There’s an apparent interest from the
Vancouver Canucks in a player who was recently put on the wire.
On Thursday, the Toronto Maple Leafs placed forward
David Kampf on unconditional waivers for the purpose of contract termination. That means, if Kampf were to clear waivers on Friday, he would become an unrestricted free agent.
Later that day, on his show
Donnie & Dhali – The Team, Rick Dhaliwal stated that the
Vancouver Canucks have interest in pursuing the 30-year-old.
“I’ve been told Canucks will definitely be in on Kampf,” Dhaliwal said. “I can confirm they will be in on him.”
Kampf has yet to play a game in the NHL this season. The Chomutov, Czechia native was placed on waivers prior to the regular season and was assigned to the Maple Leafs’ American Hockey League affiliate, the Toronto Marlies. He ended up playing in four games for the Marlies, posting one assist. His last game came on October 29, before Kampf left the team.
Last week, Toronto
suspended Kampf for leaving the farm team without pay. It truly signalled the end of his tenure with the team that he had been with since 2021. Although
Toronto was trying to move Kampf elsewhere, no deal has been reached, leaving the Leafs with no choice but to get rid of the veteran’s contract.
Kampf’s current deal has an AAV of $2.4 million through the 2026-27 campaign, with a signing bonus of $1.325 million. That was reportedly a hurdle the Leafs couldn’t overcome in trading the disgruntled centre.
Breaking into the NHL with the Chicago Blackhawks during the 2017-18 season, Kampf has been a solid depth piece in his four seasons with the Leafs. He scored a career-high 27 points during the 2022-23 season, but fell out of favour with Toronto head coach Craig Berube last year, leading to him playing just once during the team’s run to the second round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
In 536 regular-season appearances in the NHL, Kampf has scored 48 goals and 95 assists for 143 points. He’s also notched seven assists in 35 postseason games. He will be an unrestricted free agent as of Friday, November 14, and will be eligible to sign with whichever team he chooses.
