Rumor: Leafs “firmly in the mix” to sign former Habs captain

Buckle up, Habs fans. Things are about to get weird.

According to a report from Toronto Maple Leafs insider Nick Alberga, the Leafs are "firmly in the mix" to sign free agent forward and former Montreal Canadiens captain Max Pacioretty.

Check it out:

The 36 year old Pacioretty had just four goals and 23 points in 47 games for the Washington Capitals last season. He has missed considerable playing time the past few seasons due to a particularly brutal achilles tendon injury. In 2023 it looked like Pacioretty may never lace up the skates in the NHL again, now just a year later it looks like he may be not only continuing his career, but making a complete heel turn by joining the Leafs. No doubt there will be some die-hard Habs fans out there who will be upset by this news. To those fans I say: chill out.

Pacioretty has been a well respected veteran in the game for years now and he clearly has some more to give. What better team than the Leafs for a veteran player looking to help take things to the next level. It's not clear yet what kind of contract Pacioretty will get from the team, but this isn't wholly different from the Leafs' signing of Patrick Marleau back in 2017... assuming the Leafs don't hand Pacioretty $6.25 million per season...

Stay tuned for official confirmation of this rumored signing.