This contract gives John Chayka one of the NHL's biggest competitive edges

Matthew Knies just landed on Sportsnet's list of the best value contracts in the NHL, and the Toronto Maple Leafs have to love it.

The outlet flagged his $7,750,000 cap hit as one of the smartest numbers on the books heading into a new season.

He's only 23, and last season he set a career high with 66 points across 79 games.

Knies also chipped in six power play goals, ten power play assists and a shorthanded goal, proof he's more than just a net-front body.

A -30 rating came with that production, and it says a lot more about the team around him than it does about Knies himself.

Compare that to William Nylander, who carries an $11,500,000 cap hit and finished with 79 points, only 13 more than Knies produced for less than half the money.

Compare that to Sergei Bobrovsky's $7,000,000 cap hit and an .876 save percentage, and the gap in value across that roster gets even sharper.

He heard his name in trade rumors most of last year, even after Toronto's front office got overhauled from top to bottom.

Toronto's front office bet stayed put through the noise

None of it stuck. Toronto never got an offer good enough, and shipping him out for futures would have been the wrong move.

The Maple Leafs finished 32-36-14 on the year, closing with a seven-game skid, and Knies was one of the only players still pushing.

A middle six cap hit doing top six production is the hockey version of finding a parking spot downtown in July. Everybody wants one, almost nobody has one.

How many 23-year-olds put together a career year while playing through a lost season and still look like they're getting better?

Jim Hiller takes over behind Toronto's bench for the new season, and a proven scoring wing like Knies gives him something to build around immediately.

Easton Cowan posted 29 points as a 21-year-old last season, and if he keeps climbing next to Knies, Toronto's group up front looks a lot different than it did back in April.