Maple Leafs linked to NHL sniper in move that could connect him with Auston Matthews

Free agency opened back on July 1, and somehow one of the most dangerous scorers on the market is still sitting at home without a contract.

Patrik Laine has been connected to a handful of teams over the past six weeks, and the latest name to pop up again is the one a lot of Leafs fans have been quietly hoping for.

Montreal Gazette reporter Herb Zurkowsky laid out the situation clearly, noting that the Rangers, Wild, Lightning, Maple Leafs and now the Flyers have all been floated as possible landing spots.

Toronto stands out for one obvious reason. Laine went second overall in 2016, one pick after Auston Matthews.

Nearly a decade later, watching them line up together would be a pretty wild bit of draft-class symmetry.

Here is the post that got fans talking again.

The upside is easy to see. Laine has scored 224 goals in 537 career games and can still change a game with one shot.

But the risk is real too. He is coming off a lost season in Montreal, dealt with core-muscle surgery, and has never been known for his defensive game.

Toronto also has a crowded forward group already, so fit matters just as much as talent here.

A one-year, bonus-heavy deal keeps the risk manageable for Toronto's tight cap situation, and pairing a pure shooter like Laine with Matthews down the middle is the kind of low-cost gamble that could pay off big if his health cooperates.

Nothing is close according to the report, and Laine's camp seems in no rush.

Training camps are still weeks away, so there is time for this to play out in either direction.

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