The Toronto Maple Leafs opened camp Thursday with the news that Simon Benoit is day-to-day with back spasms. The 25-year-old had three goals, seven assists, 60 PIMs, 82 SOG and a -29 plus/minus in 78 games played with Anaheim in 2022-23. Benoit signed a one-year, $775,000 contract with the Maple Leafs in the offseason and will hope to be back soon as he makes a push to make their opening night roster.
Muzzin was only able to play in four games in 2022-23 with the Maple Leafs and picked up an assist and eight SOG across that span before missing the majority of the season due to a Cervical Spine injury. He is expected to spend the entire 2023-24 season on the long-term injured reserve for the final year of his contract. The 34-year-old defensemen is currently sitting on 69 goals, 294 points, and 399 PIMs across 683 career games played.
Benoit played his first full NHL season in 2023, posting three goals with seven assists (10 points) in 78 games. The 6-foot-3, 203 lbs. blueliner is known more for his rugged defensive play, blocking 128 shots and laying 216 hits for the Ducks. Given the Maple Leafs' depth, Benoit will likely serve as an extra defenseman or head to the AHL.
Cowan was Toronto's 2023 1st round pick (28th overall) and has signed a three-year, entry-level contract on Thursday with the Maple Leafs. The 18-year-old centre is fresh off a 20 goal, 53 point, 47 PIM, and +10 plus/minus season across 68 games in 2022-23 with the London Knights (OHL). He is expected to spend the 2023-24 season back with London.
Groulx had 18 goals, 21 assists, 41 PIMs and a -22 plus/minus through 63 games played with San Diego (AHL) in 2022-23 and has signed a one-year, $775,000 contract extension with Anaheim. The 23-year-old forward was a 2018 2nd round pick (54th overall) and has a goal and three points across 20 career NHL games.
Maccelli broke out in 2022-23 with Arizona as he finished second in rookie scoring with 11 goals, 38 assists, 18 PIMs and 61 SOG and has signed a three-year, $10.275 million contract extension ($3,425,000 AAV).The 22-year-old left-winger was drafted by Arizona in the fourth-round (98th overall) and has 12 goals and 55 points in 87 career games.
Lettieri had 23 goals, 26 assists, 34 PIMs and a +9 plus/minus through 48 games played with Providence (AHL) in 2022-23 and has signed a two-year, two-way contract worth $1.55 million ($750,000 AAV) with Minnesota. The 28-year-old veteran right-winger brings seven goals and 18 points across 83 career NHL games played to the Wild after appearing in one game for the Boston Bruins in 2022-23.
Rifai had four goals, 12 assists, 118 PIMs and a +3 plus/minus in his first season with the Toronto Marlies (AHL) in 2022-23 and has now signed a two-year, entry-level contract worth $775,000 AAV. The 25-year-old defenseman has yet to make his NHL debut after joining the Marlies as an undrafted free agent in 2022-23 after completing four years at Harvard (NCAA).
Stecher returns to the Coyotes after being dealt to the Flames as a rental at the 2023 trade deadline. The 29-year-old blueliner finished the season with 14 points (3G / 11A) in 81 games and brings a veteran presence to a Coyotes' blueline that is mainly young and inexperienced.
Domi had 20 goals, 36 assists, 179 SOG, 82 PIMs and a -15 plus/minus through 80 games with both Chicago and Dallas in 2022-23 and has signed a one-year deal worth $3 Million with the Toronto Maple Leafs. The 28-year-old centre will follow in the footsteps of his father who played 777 games for the Maple Leafs and picked up 196 points (84G/112A) and 2265 PIMs. Max has picked up 121 goals and 370 points in 581 career NHL games with six different teams.
Stolarz was 5-6-0 with a .899 SV% and 3.73 GAA through 19 games with Anaheim in 2022-23 and has signed a one-year, $1.1 million deal with the Florida Panthers. The 29-year-old goaltender was a second-round pick in 2012 (45th overall) and has a career record of 27-24-7 with a 2.93 GAA and .912 SV% throughout 81 NHL games.
Ekman-Larsson had two goals and 20 assists (22 points) in 54 games with the Canucks last season before being bought out this summer. With Aaron Ekblad and Brandon Montour expected to miss a portion of the early part of next season, Ekman-Larsson provides some veteran depth on the blueline.
Mermis spent most of the 2023 season in the AHL, but appeared in two NHL games with the Wild. The 29-year-old blue liner had 26 points (5G / 21A) in 63 AHL games and has four points (1G / 3A) in 27 career NHL games with the Coyotes, Devils and Wild.
Ekman-Larsson carried an $8.25M cap hit over the next four seasons but will now cost them $2.127 million over the next eight seasons. However, his cap hit in 2024 will be just $146,667 per CapFriendly.com. Ekman-Larsson finished the 2023 season with just 22 points (2G / 20A) in 54 games.
Pezzetta had seven goals, eight assists, 77 PIMs, 70 SOG, and a -4 plus/minus through 63 games played while becoming a fan favourite in Montreal and has signed a two-year contract extension with an AAV of $812,000. The 25-year-old left-winger has played in 114 career NHL games played across two seasons.
Knies has been out since Game 2 due to a concussion and although he is improving significantly according to head coach Sheldon Keefe, he will be out again for Game 5 vs. Florida. The 20-year-old is enjoying a strong first career playoffs, picking up a goal, three assists, seven SOG, four PIMs and a +3 plus/minus through seven games prior to his injury.
Woll was sensational in his first career playoff start in Game 4, stopping 24 of 25 shots (.960 SV%) as he led Toronto to their first win in the series as they escaped a sweep with a 2-1 win over Florida. The 24-year-old rookie has been solid during his short stint in the playoffs, with his 1-1-0 record, 2.45 GAA and .902 SV%. He will hope to keep the Maple Leafs' season alive as they take on the Florida Panthers in Game 5, who led the NHL in shots per game (36.8) during the regular season.
