Toronto Maple Leafs expected to sign two free agents as early as today

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Cooper Godin
September 10, 2024 (10:32)

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An insider says that the Toronto Maple Leafs have two new additions lined up before training camp opens next week.

After being unsigned for the last couple months and reportedly wanting a trade out of Toronto, the Maple Leafs were finally able to agree to terms on a contract with forward Nick Robertson. With Robertson's contract now signed, the Maple Leafs will turn their attention elsewhere and may already have a pair of players lined up to add to their lineup.

In a social media post on Tuesday, TSN's Darren Dreger revealed that he expects the Toronto Maple Leafs to add Max Pacioretty and Jani Hakanpaa now that they've dealt with Nick Robertson's contract. Dreger said that they wanted to get Robertson's deal done quickly to avoid a potential offer sheet.

"I would expect Pacioretty and Hakanpaa to be next in line as Leafs adds. It was important to get Robertson done to avoid the possibility of an offer sheet." Dreger said.

Pacioretty, 35, has had a tough time with injuries in recent years after tearing his Achilles twice. He returned to the Capitals' lineup in early January, appearing in 47 games for them in the regular season and all four in the Stanley Cup Playoffs. The former Montreal Canadiens captain finished the season with 23 points (four goals, 19 assists), 25 penalty minutes and was a minus-14.

As for Jani Hakanpaa, he was supposed to sign with the Maple Leafs back on July 1st, but because of an injury to his knee last season and the uncertainty that he may not be able to play in 2024-25, the team never registered his contract with the NHL. Given that Dreger believes he'll be one of the next additions to the Maple Leafs' roster, Brad Treliving must be pretty confident that Hakanpaa will be able to suit up for the team this season.

With the Maple Leafs currently only at $400,000 in cap space, according to PuckPedia, it's going to be interesting to see how they'll be able to make the signings of Max Pacioretty and Jani Hakanpaa work. It's possible that both join the team on professional tryout contracts, but once opening night rolls around, they'll either need to move salary to sign them to a standard NHL deal or release both of them if they're unable to solve their cap issues.