The Toronto Maple Leafs are back in the spotlight this week, and the calendar is already crowded.
After a rough season that left them last in the Atlantic Division, Toronto opens training camp with plenty to sort through and plenty to prove. The roster has a different look now, with Darren Raddysh, Jack Roslovic, Nick Paul, Teddy Blueger, and Colton Sissions among the additions. On top of that, a group of rookies and young prospects is chasing a chance to catch the coaching staff’s attention.
The team’s public return begins Monday after this weekend’s prospect challenge. Today, the Leafs are holding their annual golf tournament, a lighter stop on the schedule where players can relax, meet the media, and offer a glimpse of what comes next.
Main camp gets underway on Wednesday, September 16, and the preseason follows quickly after that. Toronto’s first exhibition games are set for September 19 against the Montreal Canadiens.
There’s no sense pretending this group is expected to look finished right away. But with Jim Hiller in place as the new head coach, this week should at least start to show how the new system is going to look.
The Leafs are also working with a short preseason slate. Because the regular season has been extended to 84 games, they will play only four exhibition games, and all of them are split-squad matchups. That means two games at the same time, which makes the evaluation process tougher and leaves players on the bubble with fewer chances to stand out.
Here’s the full preseason schedule:
Saturday, Sep 19 at 7:00 PM - Toronto Maple Leafs at Montreal Canadiens (Split-squad, away at Centre Bell)
Saturday, Sep 19 at 7:00 PM - Montreal Canadiens at Toronto Maple Leafs (Split-squad, home at Scotiabank Arena)
Wednesday, Sep 23 at 7:00 PM (or TBD) - Toronto Maple Leafs at Ottawa Senators (Split-squad, away at Canadian Tire Centre)
Wednesday, Sep 23 at 7:00 PM - Ottawa Senators at Toronto Maple Leafs (Split-squad, home at Scotiabank Arena
The regular season starts on September 29, when the Maple Leafs face the Montreal Canadiens.
In Other News...
Bobrovskys First Comments Give Leafs Fans Plenty To Read Into
Sergei Bobrovsky is already sounding like a player who knows the move to Toronto is about more than just changing sweaters. After signing a three-year deal with the Maple Leafs, the veteran goaltender thanked Panthers fans for their support and looked back on a run in Florida that included two Stanley Cup wins, while also framing this next stop as a new phase with hopes of more success ahead.
For Leafs fans, the appeal is obvious: a proven big-game goalie with championship experience and the kind of perspective that can steady a room. Bobrovskys 2025-26 season was not his sharpest, but the Panthers were dealing with injuries and roster problems around him, which is part of why Toronto will be watching closely to see how much of his bounce-back lives in the future rather than the past. [Read more 🡒]
Leafs Prospect Showcase Just Put Two Camp Storylines In Focus
The Maple Leafs got a useful early look at a pair of camp storylines over the weekend at their 2026-27 Prospect Showcase, where the group split a couple of tightly played games and gave the staff some evidence that the organizations emphasis on mobile, offense-minded defensemen is starting to show up on the ice. Toronto fell 4-3 in overtime to Ottawa before bouncing back with a 6-4 win over Winnipeg, and the blue line did plenty of the talking in both outings.
Three goals from Maple Leafs defensemen stood out, but so did prospect Tinus Luc Koblar, who piled up three assists and looked increasingly comfortable driving play. His confidence was one of the more encouraging takeaways for Toronto, with the kind of performance that can only help when camp decisions start to get serious, even as his next step is still to be determined. [Read more 🡒]
Maple Leafs May Have Found A Prospect They Cant Ignore
Miroslav Holinka has quickly become one of the more interesting names in the Maple Leafs pipeline. The fifth-round pick from the 2024 NHL Draft backed up his junior numbers with an 80-point season, then got a first taste of pro hockey with one game for the Toronto Marlies. He also turned heads at the prospect challenge, giving the organization another look at a player who is still developing but already looks like more than a long-shot pick.
Holinkas profile is the kind Toronto has to monitor closely because the upward path is still there. He is viewed as a prospect with real room to grow, and the next step is carving out more playing time in the AHL before any NHL conversation becomes serious. For now, the buzz around him is less about hype than accumulation of small signs that he may be a player the Maple Leafs cannot afford to lose track of. [Read more 🡒]