Maple Leafs Have Chance to Claim Matthew Knies' NCAA Teammate off of Waivers

The Toronto Maple Leafs are in the process of trying to finalize their NHL roster, but there is a chance that the team could yet add another player who happens to have a lot of familiarity with newly-extended star winger Matthew Knies.

With training camps coming to a close this week, teams have been placing players on waivers to trim things down to the 23-player limit. On Thursday, former University of Minnesota captain Ben Meyers was one of those players who was waived as the Seattle Kraken once again reduced their training camp roster.

Meyers and Knies played together during the 2021-22 season before Meyers ultimately signed a deal with the Colorado Avalanche, making it into the lineup for 5 NHL games to close out the year.

Meyers spent another 2 seasons in Colorado before being traded to Anaheim and suiting up in 14 games. He then subsequently spent time with the Seattle Kraken, who signed him to a 1-year extension by the Kraken earlier this summer.

The 26-year-old center spent 57 games with the Coachella Valley Firebirds last season, producing 23 goals and 51 points.

Granted, Meyers would not have the opportunity to play on a line with Knies were he to be claimed by the Leafs, but the organization does have the luxury of being able to probe Knies for information on his former teammate to see if there's anything there worth taking a chance on.

The main issue that the Leafs will have here is that they're already very deep at forward, and have yet to clear out the likes of David Kampf and/or Calle Jarnkrok.

Is there a fit for Meyers? Maybe, maybe not. But it's certainly an interesting potential proposition for the Leafs, given the year he had with Coachella Valley in 2024-25.