I hope this is true, but I just don't believe it.
The telltale signs for me are the low contract value and the two-way salary. These features make him much less likely to clear waivers. Its as if the Leafs have resigned themselves to clear the contract spot and let him go if he doesn't make the big club from the get-go. Que sera, sera.
The other thing is the reference in other posts to his use in a low-TOI, high-energy role. The low TOI I get -- PK and mop-up time playing behind Matthews, Tavares and Kadri. Its the "high-energy" bit that puzzles me. For all the things I love about this guy (and there are many), when I watch him play I often wish I could turn the game to fast-forward and put some broken glass up his ass. He looks like he needs to play at twice the speed, with twice the energy, and with ten-times the anger and urgency in his pulse. If he could turn that up, he would look like King Kong on skates. Without it, he looks like Fozzie Bear.
I've waited and hoped for this kid's arrival since the day he was drafted, but he's no longer exempt and que sera, sera.