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Leafs: Nonis ‘not surprised’ Kadri, Franson and Fraser remain unsigned

Nazem Kadri

Toronto Maple Leafs center Nazem Kadri is congratulated by teammates after scoring on the Minnesota Wild during the first period of an NHL hockey game Thursday, Jan. 19, 2012, in Toronto. (AP Photo/The Canadian Press, Frank Gunn)

AP

On a day where most of the talk focused on his own contract extension, Dave Nonis spent some time discussing three other pressing deals.

The club’s key restricted free agents -- Nazem Kadri, Cody Franson and Mark Fraser -- all remain unsigned as August draws closer.

But, according to Nonis, the timeline thus far has given him little to no concern.

“That’s not a red flag. It’s July,” Nonis said on Sportsnet 590. “I’m not surprised that they’re not signed, and we have a lot of time before we have to start worrying about it.”

Looking across the NHL, it’s easy to see why Nonis remains unfazed.

Several teams have opted to put RFA negotiations on the backburner while dealing with more pertinent matters, like unrestricted free agents and potential arbitration hearings.

St. Louis still hasn’t reached an agreement with Alex Pietrangelo, nor has Buffalo with Cody Hodgson. New Jersey still needs to reach a deal with Adam Henrique, as do the Rangers with Derek Stepan. Other key unsigned RFAs include Mikkel Boedker (Phoenix), Kyle Clifford (Los Angeles), Marcus Johansson (Washington) and Jared Cowen (Ottawa).

That said, Nonis doesn’t expect deals for either Kadri -- the club’s second leading scorer last year, with 44 points in 48 games -- or Franson, the club’s leading defenseman scorer, in the near future.

Nonis said on @fan590 he does not see a deal for Kadri or Franson anytime soon. #Leafs GM not concerned about that.

— Stephen Whyno (@SWhyno) July 25, 2013

Kadri made $1.72 million last year, while Franson pulled in $1.2 million. Fraser, who emerged as a very useful defenseman in his first year in Toronto, made $600,000. All three are expected to be re-signed before the Leafs start training camp, which will begin prior to the team’s preseason-opener on Sept. 15.