The Toronto Maple Leafs have signed goaltender Garret Sparks to a one-year, two-way contract.
The 23-year-old Elmhurst, IL native went 6-9-1 with a 3.02 GAA and .893 save percentage in 17 games for the Maple Leafs last season and was 14-4-0 record, with a 2.33 GAA and .928 save percentage 21 games for the Toronto Marlies.
The Leafs have five more restricted free agents in Connor Carrick, Josh Leivo, Martin Marincin, Frank Corrado and Peter Holland that could accept the qualifying offer extended by the team before 5pm today.
After 5pm, Carrick and Leivo would have to negotiate with the club to get a new deal, while Marincin, Corrado and Holland have arbitration hearing dates later this month or in early August.
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The Toronto Maple Leafs are in the midst of an organizational transition that will take the next two to three seasons to be fully realized.
The changes being implemented are expected to show more quickly at forward as first rounders Auston Matthews, Mitch Marner and William Nylander, along with youngsters Connor Brown, Nikita Soshnikov, Brendan Leipsic, Kasperi Kapanen and Zach Hyman press for NHL jobs next season, but the revamping of the blueline will take more time and patience.
Last season, GM Lou Lamoriello was successful in dispatching the long-term contract of Leafs team captain Dion Phaneuf to the Ottawa Senators and moved veteran defenseman Roman Polak to the San Jose Sharks for a pair of second round picks.
This summer, the club did not qualify former first-round pick Stuart Percy(who signed with Pittsburgh) and failed to re-sign two-time Eddie Shore Award winner TJ Brennan(who agreed to a two-year deal with Philadelphia).
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These moves were made to open up cap space for players down the road, create opportunity on the big club for former KHLer Nikita Zaitsev, Connor Carrick(acquired from Washington in the Daniel Winnik deal), Frank Corrado(claimed on waivers from Vancouver) Rinat Valiev, Viktor Loov and Martin Marincin and to open up spots at the AHL level for 2015 draft picks Travis Dermott, Andrew Nielsen and Stephen Desrochers.
Dermott(selected 34th overall) had another solid season with the OHL’s Erie Otters and played for Team Canada at the World Junior Championships in Helsinki last January. The 19-year-old joined the Toronto Marlies following the Otters elimination from the OHL Playoffs and played one games in the Calder Cup Playoffs.
“(It was) really educational, I took as much as I could from it, but even more than the game, just being with the guys and practicing every day, I probably learned more from that.… Dermott said at the Leafs Development last week.
Nielsen was drafted as an overager in the third round by Toronto and blossomed in his second full season with the WHL’s Lethbridge Hurricanes, scoring 18 goals and 52 assists in 71 games. The 19-year-old played five games for the Toronto Marlies at the end of the regular season and he believes that the taste of professional hockey will give him an advantage going forward.
“You’re gonna be teammates with these guys but at the same time at the start, you are competing for a job.… Nielsen said. “It’s not just a hobby and a passion anymore, it’s now turning into a job and you have to treat it like that. It was nice to have those couple games and have those few months with (the Marlies) and seeing what it took to go on a long playoff run.…
Desrochers was selected as a 19-year-old after winning a Memorial Cup in Oshawa under the tutelage of Leafs assistant coach DJ Smith. The Toronto native was moved to Kingston last season and had his best offensive season, with 11 goals and 35 assists in 69 games and was a +31 in 52 games with the Frontenacs.
Dermott indicated that he will train at the MasterCard Center in Etobicoke, ON during the summer to get ready for his first full professional season, while Nielsen will return to Toronto in August.
The Leafs brought back Polak in free agency and have Matt Hunwick in place to provide a buffer that will enable Leafs youngsters to continue to learn their craft at the AHL or ECHL level. Both veterans are unrestricted free agents at the end of next season, which means whoever did not make the club out of training camp will get another chance at the NHL after the trade deadline.
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Listen to the Summer Series edition of “The Convo… with myself and CTV’s Norman James (@NormanJamesCTV) as we discuss the Bernier deal and the Leafs search for a backup goalie.
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