Maple Leafs Organization Adds Trio of Forwards, Including Alex Nylander

As the NHL offseason passes, the Maple Leafs are being looked at as one of the teams to make one big move before the beginning of the season in order to give them the last piece they need.

Expected to make a trade or signing shortly, Brad Treliving is under a lot of pressure to add to the NHL squad before it's too late.

Well, he did make some signings but they were certainly for their AHL depth. The team officially announced they had signed Alex Nylander, Brandon Baddock and Luke Grainger to contracts on Monday.

The move brings Nylander back after he signed with the team last summer, as well as Baddock. Grainger spent last season with Wichita of the ECHL.

All the deals are for one year, and of the three players it's likely that Nylander will get a look at the NHL level due to injuries or if he's able to get on a hot streak.

He has the potential to be a solid bottom-six offensive presence, and ended up skating in five games for the Maple Leafs last season, but registered no points.

For his career, Nylander has 49 points in 126 games (25 goals, 24 assists) with his best year coming in 2019-20 where he had 26 points (10 goals, 16 assists) with the Blackhawks.

Baddock was drafted 161st overall by the Devils in 2014 and has been an AHL player for the majority of his career, save for a one game debut with the Montreal Canadiens.

He skated in 7 games for the Marlies last season as a depth forward, adding one goal and 11 PIM; he'll add a huge presence on the ice at 6'3, 223 pounds and will help inject some physicality into the lineup.

Grainger was undrafted and signed out of Western Michigan University by the San Jose Sharks but only played in 9 AHL games over his two seasons with the team.

He spent last season with Wichita of the ECHL and had 21 points in 36 games (9 goals, 12 assists).

Adding these three to the Marlies certainly helps with more depth (the name of the game this offseason) and in the case of Nylander, bring back a player who had 44 points in 64 games last year (23 goals, 21 assists).

Nylander will be looked upon to take over Alex Steeves' position as the Marlies go-to scorer, and could find some great chemistry with some of his new teammates.

Baddock and Grainger will give the team even more flexibility depending on what they want to do, and with Kyle Clifford without a deal, Baddock could be looked at as a rugged veteran presence while Grainger can give them a scoring punch at times.

It's always better to have more than less, and Brad Treliving has been busy this summer bringing in smaller names to ensure there's enough bodies to weather any storms.

But it's also time for him to make a big splash before October comes knocking on the door.