Getty Toronto Maple Leafs defenseman Chris Tanev.
The Toronto Maple Leafs didn’t make the splashiest moves at the start of free agency but midway through July, the truth is they have spent a sizable $51.4 million in free-agent signings.
That’s the total money Toronto will have to pay to the seven players the Leasf acquired in July, including re-signing goalie Matthew Murray. All in all, Toronto’s free agents come out at an average annual value of $3 million per season, per player.
NHL analyst Nate Duffett, however, isn’t convinced about Toronto’s work. In a piece written over Clutch Points on July 16 grading the Leafs’ offseason, Duffett gave Toronto a mediocre “C” grade, on an A+ to F scale, for their moves in free agency.
“Just because something didn’t work in the past doesn’t mean it will go the same the second time for the Maple Leafs. However, the Maple Leafs’ current roster construction looks like their past failures,” Duffett wrote.
The analyst makes an interesting and valid comparison between the Maple Leafs’ approach to the 2024 offseason with recent free agency periods and believes things could turn into “an ugly scene” if the past woes repeat themselves going forward.
For context, Duffett compares the signings of Chris Tanev, Oliver Ekman-Larsson, and Anthony Stolarz to those of Mark Giordano, John Klingberg, and Ilya Samsonov.
“It could be completely different this time around with these moves, but if their three signings turn into replicas of Giordano, Klingberg, and Samsonov, it’ll be an ugly scene in Toronto.”
Maple Leafs’ Free Agency Maneuvers
The Maple Leafs kickstarted their free agency by trading for former Dallas Stars defenseman Chris Tanev’s negotiating rights before July 1. When the market opened, the Leafs announced they had signed Tanev to a six-year, $27 million contract that will run through his age-40 season.
🖊️ We’ve signed defenceman Chris Tanev to a six-year contract
Tanev has appeared in 792 regular-season games starting to play in 2011. He’s scored 190 points across those games, including 33 goals and 157 assists.
The blueliner, however, is already 34 years old. That made his signing good but “risky” in the eyes of NHL insider Chris Johnston.
“The contract is long and risky. But, this was exactly the type of player the Leafs needed and exactly the one who was available,” Johnston said on The Chris Johnston Show on July 4.
On top of that, Toronto Star insider Nick Kypreos revealed other franchises tried to sign Tanev for a shorter term with a larger AAV, but the Leafs outbid the Stars’ offer by $12 million total, in what some analysts considered “insane.”
“Chris Tanev, in a vacuum, is the perfect add for the Leafs to help their defensive issues, but signing a 34-year-old to a six-year deal is insane,” Scott Maxwell of Daily Faceoff.
Along with Tanev, the Maple Leafs signed Oliver Ekman-Larsson to a four-year, $14 million deal. OEL should fill the bottom pairing of Toronto’s defense corps in 2024-25. He’s coming off winning the Stanley Cup with the Florida Panthers scoring 9 goals and 23 assists for 32 total points in 80 games.
Another former Panther, backup goaltender Anthony Stolarz, signed a two-year, $5 million deal to be Joseph Woll‘s understudy in Toronto. Stolarz posted a 16-7-2 record in 2023-24 with a .925 save percentage and allowed 2.03 goals against on average.
Will Toronto’s Free Agency Moves Whiff Once Again?
Toronto is known for its recent early-postseason exits, As Duffett points out in his column reasoning the “Grade C” assignment to the Maple Leafs free agency.
The Leafs qualified for the postseason six consecutive times from 2017 through 2022 but failed to get past the first round each of those years. They finally got to the second round in 2023, but in the 2024 postseason, they went back to their first-round losing ways falling in seven games to the Boston Bruins.
Duffett wonders “whether the moves are good enough to end their 57-year Stanley Cup drought.” He questions that based on the recent signings of Klingberg, Giordano, and Samsonov.
“The Maple Leafs brought in Mark Giordano as their shutdown guy as an aging defenseman. He had some good stretches but ended up aging quickly and couldn’t hold that role long enough to get them over the top.
“Toronto signed John Klingberg last season, who plays like Oliver Ekman-Larsson. The signing looked successful until Klingberg stepped on the ice, and the fans and media turned on his passive style.
“The Maple Leafs signed Ilya Samsonov as an unproven starter in 2022-23. They tried to turn him into a starter, but his play was too inconsistent over long stretches.”
Giordano, Klingberg, and Samsonov have already left Toronto as free agents without signing extensions to their initial deals.