Colton Sissons was given $8.5-million combined over the next two years so he'll need to prove it was worth the price especially coming off only 11 points in 2025-26.
Sissons signed a two-year deal on July 1 and that signing is a big increase over his previous $2.86M salary so expectations are high. Sissons is meant to give the Maple Leafs a staunch defensive centre who kills penalties, wins puck battles, and someone who can help add some stability to the bottom-six with elite face-off metrics (56.9% last season).
However he's also coming off his worst offensive season since 2020-21 as he only had 11 points in 66 games for the Vegas Golden Knights in 2025-26 - with the least amount of goals since 2015-16 although Sissons added eight points in 22 playoff games.
Toronto paid Sissons for the parts of his game the 11 points don't reflect
It's a lot of money to give a player who is less offensive than others, though John Chayka was leaving no stone unturned when it came to changing the bottom-six this summer, so Sissons has to prove he was worth the price.
Sissons, 32, does have some offensive capabilities. In 2018-19 and 2023-24 he scored 15 goals each season, and has averaged over 19 points for his career. He's not going to blow you away, but he can provide some scoring even on the penalty kill (seven SHG).
But that's not why he was signed, though. Sissons has a career 53.9% face-off win percentage, has averaged 102.75 hits over his 12-year career and is a buzzsaw on the ice.
He loves to get physical, he isn't afraid of getting in the middle of a scrum, and he takes away heavy minutes from Toronto's stars. Sissons averaged 1:25 on the PK last season and has taken over 8,400 career face-offs so he knows his role.
Sissons can play both centre and wing and it's unknown how Jim Hiller is going to line him up as the season opens up, but training camp will give him a chance to see what Sissons can offer and if he works better as a leader up the middle or a complement on the wing.
Paying $4.25-million a year for a defensive centre who has never had more than 35 points in a season is a heavy investment in his other qualities, and Sissons has to be the shutdown anchor the Maple Leafs expect him to be.
Sissons and his $4.25M cap hit requires more than fourth-line usage
If not, then he's going to be a heavy contract to deal with. Sissons has never had great possession numbers so he'll need to have people who can drive the offence beside him. Right now, Puckpedia has Dakota Joshua and Brandon Duhaime as the fourth-line wingers so you're looking at either of them to run things.
That's not an easy task considering they aren't offensive-minded players so Sissons may be better suited to playing a centre role on the third line alongside Easton Cowan. If Cowan is being pushed down due to others, then that opens up his playmaking and creativity on the third line and Sissons can take advantage.
He can provide the defensive zone face-offs, and help with the matchups while allowing Jim Hiller to surround him with more offensively inclined players because he knows that Sissons is responsible defensively.
Sissons loves to crash the net and Cowan has the ability to get in close to give Sissons rebound chances so there could be some orchestrated chaos in order to get more pucks on net and get more chances.
But he also has to keep his defensive talents in top form as Toronto can't sacrifice a bit more offence from Sissons at the cost of losing his true strength. Jim Hiller has to balance giving him tough assignments while also allowing him to thrive where he does best.
Toronto didn't add Sissons for offence and he shouldn't be expected to get back to that 30-point level. But he should be expected to kill penalties, win face-offs, handle difficult assignments and give the team a bit of tertiary offensive help in the bottom-six.
If he isn't able to do that while remaining at a minimal level of production, then that contract given out by Chayka is going to be much harder to defend.
Was Colton Sissons a good or bad signing for the Toronto Maple Leafs?
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