Toronto Maple Leafs are now worth a billion dollars more than before

The Toronto Maple Leafs might not be ending the league's longest active Stanley Cup drought, but there's one other category they'll seemingly always be at (or near) the top in.

In a report put out today by Sportico's Kurt Badenhausen, the Leafs remain the NHL's highest-valued team for the fourth year in a row.

According to Sportico's ranking, the Leafs are worth a $3.66 billion valuation, followed by the New York Rangers ($3.25 billion), Montreal Canadiens ($2.93 billion), Boston Bruins ($2.67 billion) and Los Angeles Kings ($2.5 billion).

🏒NHL Valuations are here! @kbadenhausen's latest in Sportico's valuation series. @NHL team values have nearly doubled over the past three years, and the Toronto Maple Leafs remain on top at $3.66 billion.

Read the full story here: https://t.co/03M8iIWqiH pic.twitter.com/wvmEYJ4adW

— Sportico (@Sportico) October 30, 2024

Toronto has some inherent advantages over most other markets: it's the NHL's only primarily English-speaking franchise to exist in every season the league has played, it has a massive fanbase in one of the largest cities in North America that extends throughout the country and it has a stronghold on the media market (that has deep ties to its ownership group).

It should be noted that NHL team valuations aren't an exact science and can sometimes change depending on the source.

Sportico's numbers differ slightly from Forbes, which put the Leafs first in the NHL last season but had ranked them second behind the New York Rangers in each of the previous nine rankings.

Part of what contributed to the sudden rise in valuation is likely a recent internal ownership transaction. Rogers reached an agreement to purchase Bell's stake in MLSE, which will give them 75 per cent control over the company once the deal becomes final.

"The transaction values MLSE at $9 billion and is expected to close in mid-2025, subject to league approvals," the piece from Badenhausen reads.

Rogers now owns a majority stake in the Toronto Maple Leafs and Raptorshttps://t.co/UNRCesU4ld

— blogTO (@blogTO) September 18, 2024

Two other high-profile sales of NHL teams have occurred in the past calendar year: Michael Andlauer purchased the Ottawa Senators, while the Arizona Coyotes were bought, dissolved, and had their franchise replaced by the Utah Hockey Club, a group led by Ryan Smith.

And with the Leafs' home venue, Scotiabank Arena, undergoing a $350 million renovation starting this past spring and continuing through next season, the franchise's value can only continue to rise.