Despite registering multi-goal seasons (six of those being 30-goal campaigns) for the bulk of his NHL career, veteran winger Max Pacioretty can no longer be relied upon as a primary scorer, nor a secondary one. Essentially, since his second Achilles tendon tear in mid-January of the 2022-23 season with the Carolina Hurricanes, Pacioretty has been a shell of the player he once was. Still, despite a down season (for his standards) with the Washington Capitals throughout the 2023-24 campaign, Pacioretty turned a professional tryout agreement into a bonus-laden deal with the Maple Leafs last summer. Unfortunately for his earning power, Pacioretty spent much of his year on the injured reserve, scoring five goals and 13 points in 37 contests, averaging 13:30 of ice time. He turned things around during a brief playoff stretch, scoring three goals and eight points in 11 games while averaging 12:51 of ice time. Hindsight being 20/20, Pacioretty’s strong postseason performance wasn’t good enough to earn him a guarante
