Maple Leafs Organization Sign Five New Players to Boost Development Pipeline for the Future
Photo credit: John E. Soko#322;owski- IMAGN Images
The Toronto Maple Leafs officially added some depth to the Marlies on Tuesday, bringing in five new players: Gunnarwolfe Fontaine, Ben King, Nick Rheaume, Marko Sikic, and Ryan McCleary on AHL contracts.
The depth of the Maple Leafs' AHL affiliate has grown recently in the past few weeks, with the Marlies adding guys like Travis Boyd, and Villi Lettieri but they continued on Tuesday adding a quintet of players to shore up their depth.
Again, for fans it's not the flashiest move but with the team losing a few names to free agency as well as leaving the team outright; they needed to shore things up.
All five players signed a one-year deal, giving them a bit of an audition to see if they are worth keeping past this season.
Quick Overview of the Signings
Gunnarwolfe Fontaine - A two-way forward with NCAA experience at both Northeastern University as well as Ohio State; arguably the coolest name in the AHL.
Ben King - A high-scoring forward who had a 52-goal, 105-point campaign with Red Deer in 2021-22.
Nick Rheaume - A gritty defensive forward who was a solid addition to both UMass-Lowell and Northeastern University of the NCAA.
Marko Sikic - A familiar face, Sikic spent four games with the Marlies last year and also spent time with Toronto's ECHL affiliate Cincinnati.
Ryan McCleary - Another big-bodied defenseman who is out of the Penguins system originally, and has the two-way potential to make an impact for the Marlies.
Why This Matters for the Maple Leafs
Well, besides giving them a boatload of insurance, it gives the team a lot of leeway when it comes to potential call-ups.
While these guys might not necessarily be the first to get brought up, if names like Easton Cowan, Noah Chadwick, Jacob Quillan and Luke Haymes all get their name called to the Maple Leafs; these players will step in to help the Marlies in their absence.
It also gives Toronto a group of players who are all young and have a lot of potential and bring with them some AHL experience.
For instance, King has 56 points in 125 AHL games and had a very solid season for Manitoba last season; he has the potential to breakout offensively (106 goals in 236 games) and had that aforementioned 52-goal season for Red Deer.
And who knows? Perhaps one of these players can come out of nowhere to surprise Toronto and earn themselves a call-up; especially a guy like King who can play all three forward positions, and has a ton of experience.
Bigger Picture for the Maple Leafs
What this does for Toronto's future isn't just give them a slew of names that might be role players in the future, but also allow them to move a few of their other smaller assets out of town who can be filled by names from the Marlies.
For example, David Kampf or Calle Jarnkrok. While both are great veterans who add defense to Toronto's fourth line, they can do the same thing with a player like Quillan or Lettieri who come at a fraction of the cost.
So the team can open up cap space, give their young players a chance to shine in the big leagues, plus allow those secondary pieces to fill those gaps in the AHL and get a chance to shine themselves; albeit in a smaller spotlight.
Previously on HockeyPatrol
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