Leafs place Michael Pezzetta on waivers
Now that their season is officially over, the Toronto Maple Leafs have waived one of their players.
On Friday, the Leafs placed forward Michael Pezzetta on waivers.
The #LeafsForever put Michael Pezzetta on waivers puckpedia.com/waiver-wire
Pezzetta, 28, is eligible to participate in the AHL playoffs, so this move allows him to either be claimed by another NHL team, or be sent down to the Leafs’ AHL affiliate Toronto Marlies in time for their playoff run.
The Toronto native spent the majority of the season with this Marlies, where he had four goals and six assists for 10 points in 38 games. He was called up to the Leafs for nine games at the end of the regular season, in which he went scoreless.
Pezzetta was initially selected by the Montreal Canadiens in the sixth round of the 2016 NHL Entry Draft. He spent his first few professional seasons playing primarily for the AHL’s Laval Rocket before making his NHL debut for Montreal in the 2021-22 season, when he notched five goals and six assists for 11 points over 51 games. He would go on to play the next three seasons with the Canadiens, including a career-best campaign of seven goals and eight assists for 15 points over 63 games in 2022-23.
Prior to joining the Canadiens’ organization, Pezzetta had a four-year junior career in the OHL. In his draft year of 2015-16, he registered 10 goals and 18 assists for 28 points in 64 games while playing for the Sudbury Wolves. His best junior season by far came in 2017-18, his last year in the OHL which he split between the Wolves and the Sarnia Sting. That season, he totaled 23 goals and 29 assists for 52 points in 62 games. He then contributed a goal and an assist for two points in 12 Sting playoff games.
This past offseason, Pezzetta signed a two-year, $1.625 million contract with the Leafs.