NHL: Toronto Maple Leafs at Florida Panthers - Source: Imagn — NHL: Matthew Knies - Source: Imagn

Maple Leafs confident with Matthew Knies' contract extension, no offer sheet 'drama' needed, claims insider

Modified Jun 09, 2025 15:54 GMT

There may be no bigger priority for the Toronto Maple Leafs heading into the offseason than signing budding star Matthew Knies.

The Maple Leafs winger has emerged as one of the few power forwards in today's game, exploding for a career-high 58 points (29 goals, 29 assists) in his second full NHL season. He also continued to display his physical presence, delivering 181 hits on the year.

Knies was one of just four players to score 29 or more goals and register 150 hits in 2024-25. Tom Wilson, Brady Tkachuk, and Filip Forsberg were the only others to achieve the feat. A pretty impressive list to be a part of.

Given all of this, you can understand why Maple Leafs fans are worried about the threat of an offer sheet handed to Matthew Knies this offseason. However, the organization believes there is no reason for concern.

Leafs reporter James Mirtle provided an update on Knies' situation in an article for The Athletic. Mirtle posted the link to the piece on X (formerly Twitter).

"The Leafs remain confident they will get Matthew Knies inked to a reasonable second contract without any offer-sheet drama," Mirtle wrote.

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Knies is a pending RFA, having just completed the final season of his three-year, $2,775,000 entry-level contract with the Maple Leafs, signed in 2023.

Matthew Knies has expressed his desire to remain in Toronto for a long time

While people on the outside and other fan bases speculate and dream about prying Knies away from Toronto, the 22-year-old himself has no interest in not being a Maple Leaf.

Knies has always professed his love for playing in Toronto and reiterated that during his end-of-season media availability when asked about a potential offer sheet. Sportsnet's Luke Fox shared his response on X.

"Matthew Knies scoffs at the idea of an offer sheet. Says he loves being a Leaf. Didn’t want to say whether he prefers term or bridge," Fox wrote.

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It has to be very reassuring for the organization and fan base to hear how much being a Toronto Maple Leaf means to Knies.

Extending him to a long-term contract will remain general manager Brad Treliving's number one focus and priority in the coming weeks to avoid any chance of an offer sheet from July 1 onwards.

About the author

Jackson Weber is an NHL journalist at Sportskeeda with a Bcomm degree in Business and Sport Management from the University of Guelph.

Jackson has grown up as a lifelong Pittsburgh Penguins fan. Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin are his all-time favorite players. Watching the Penguins win the Stanley Cup three times is an experience that Jackson will never forget. Years later, you realize how rare it is to see your favorite team win even once, so three championships were just incredible.

When not watching, playing, or writing about sports, Jackson loves to cook and is passionate about health and nutrition.

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