The Toronto Maple Leafs have added some toughness to the roster, signing Kurtis Gabriel to a one-year deal worth $750K. The team has also signed David Kampf to a two-year contract with an average annual value of $1.5MM. James Mirtle of The Athletic adds that the team has also signed Alex Biega and Carl Dahlstrom, while extending a professional tryout agreement to Joshua Ho-Sang.
None of these are game-changing names for the Maple Leafs, but at least one of them has a chance to play every night. Kampf was specifically mentioned by GM Kyle Dubas as a player the team has been targeting for a while, likely thanks to his defensive contributions at the center ice position. One thing the Maple Leafs have been dearly missing over the last few seasons is a true center who can penalty kill and in Kampf they’ve found their answer. The 26-year-old was left unqualified by the Chicago Blackhawks and the Maple Leafs snatched him up for a not-insignificant cap hit. He’ll likely start the year as the team’s fourth-line center.
Gabriel, a 6’4″ enforcer from the San Jose Sharks, will certainly raise some eyebrows on a contract with Toronto, given the way their team is usually perceived. The Maple Leafs have been adding more and more toughness over the last few years by bringing in names like Wayne Simmonds and Zach Bogosian, but now have decided to sign a player that doesn’t really bring much else. The 28-year-old Gabriel has just 49 games in his NHL career but has racked up 153 penalty minutes, including 15 fighting majors. Even though he’s recorded just five NHL points, he could very well be on the roster to add some bite to the fourth line on specific nights.
Biega and Dahlstrom bring some defensive depth to the organization, but neither one figures to be a full-time member of the NHL roster. It’s Ho-Sang that will draw the most attention of the last three. The 25-year-old was a first-round pick in 2014 and has put up strong offensive totals in the minor leagues. There was also a public falling out with his management with the New York Islanders, leading to a split and essentially an end to his NHL career. After playing the 2020-21 season on loan in Sweden, Ho-Sang became a Group VI unrestricted free agent. If he can’t land a contract with the Maple Leafs out of camp, it seems likely that he’ll never have another chance.
HUGE. Makes the leafs immediate contenders.
Why not wait for the rest of the off-season to play out before rushing to judgment?
@cjmask – Take all the fun out of it, of course!
Why do I see the TML SC parade going into a cul da sac
@Dave – Right out of “Animal House”, just a cul-de-sac, instead of an alley! :)
@Mac I think someone got a little butthurt for a small shot being taken at their team. Wow. Is that Dubas’ burner acct?
@wreckage – Well, again, to be fair, I never fault anyone for standing up for their team. Many folks are always super-optimistic, because that is their nature. I’d count KD in that group and don’t see that is terrible, as long as it doesn’t manifest itself into “crib blindness.” Then you have those who are in the middle, being more cautiously optimistic. And others are always going to say every move was crappola. I enjoy the theater of all views, myself. I’m not a Leaf-hater, as SN590/TSN 1050 are on my presets for interweb radio enjoyment of games. “Bonesie & Ralphie” are always a great listen for me, as evidenced by just one memorable exchange:
Bonesie – “You know, I think that’s the first time in my professional broadcasting career that I’ve ever yelled at anybody to “shoot the puck!”
Ralphie – “Umm, I don’t think it is, and I’ve been with you for much of your professional broadcasting career.”
It gets a little tiresome, predictable, and overused when even depth signings get the inevitable “oh plan the parade” or variations of it. Every team makes these type of signings. It’s not meant to push the needle one way or another, but they still need to ice a full lineup come pick drop.
*puck drop
The fun of it is that Leafs fans do start planning the parade at depth signings! #biega4norris #ho-sang4artross
@wreckage – Agreed. Earth-shattering.
Not all signings are earth-shattering. Need bodies to fill the bottom 6, and having experienced depth isn’t a bad thing.
@cjmask – True, of course, and while this is semi-officially known as “Free Agent Frenzy Day” in the hockey world, it’s also known, to a lesser degree, as “Sarcasm Day for Hockey Fans”, where we celebrate the biggest day of the year for being backseat drivers for other teams’ signings.
The Leafs can’t make huge signings every off season. They made impact signings in recent years with Brodie and Tavares, and now it’s the phase of supplementing their core with solid depth. Any acquisition they make will be in the form of a trade, they can’t afford to do much. I wouldn’t be holding my breath for a earth shattering FA signing in Leafland.
Kampf is an OK player. But even $1.5 M AAV feels steep for this type of player.
Shouldn’t a flat cap be squeezing depth players? They largely haven’t taken the $$$ hit I would have thought.
Am I a bad hockey fan for having never heard of these guys?
Yes..
@C-Daddy – In spite of @tmlnut, I’ll say no, you’re not a bad fan, just not overburdened with some of the minutia. Although, Dahlstrom may very well be the poster child for anonymity. HockeyReference shows him with VGK, but doesn’t list his AHL time with Henderson from last year (HockeyDB does). These five are not marquee names, to be sure.
What a pair of signings, Dubas’ on the early ballot for GM of the year. Seriously though, I expect nothing but lateral movement this season from this team.