Maple Leafs close to adding another veteran defenseman.
The Maple Leafs are looking to completely transform their blue line.
Toronto Maple Leafs general manager Brad Treliving appears to be intent on transforming the Maple Leafs blue line this summer.
It has already been announced that the Maple Leafs have signed veteran defenseman Chris Tanev to a lucrative six year contract, but it sounds like Treliving is far from done making tweaks to his blue line. There are already reports that the Maple Leafs are closing in on another deal with another veteran blue line player.
According to a report from National Hockey League insider Darren Dreger, barring anything drastic, it sounds like defenseman Oliver Ekman-Larsson will also be coming to Toronto this summer. Dreger has not shared any details on what OEL's next contract might look like, but one has to hope that it won't approach the kind of commitment that the Maple Leafs have made to Tanev.
Although Ekman-Larsson is the younger man at 32 years of age, he has already been the subject of a contract buyout due to his struggles on the ice. After being bought out by the Vancouver Canucks in the summer of 2023, Ekman Larsson took a significant pay cut going from an average annual value and salary cap hit of $8.25 million on an 8 year deal all the way down to just $2.25 million on a one year deal he signed with the Florida Panthers just weeks after his buyout.
Stay tuned for more details.
