Treliving, Maple Leafs rewarded for patience in free agency

TORONTO -- Brad Treliving waited to strike, and when he did, the narrative surrounding the Toronto Maple Leafs general manager changed.

So did the makeup of his team, which suddenly has more snarl thanks to the additions of rugged forwards Tyler Bertuzzi and Max Domi after a relatively quiet kickoff to free agency.

Those additions, coupled with the signings of forward Ryan Reaves and defenseman John Klingberg after the market opened July 1, have muzzled the premature criticisms of Treliving for not being active enough in the early hours of the open market.

In the cases of Bertuzzi and Domi, each were looking for longer-term deals. When those weren't out there because of NHL-wide salary cap squeezes, short-term contracts with Toronto became more desirable.

In Treliving's vision, they fit the bill of bringing the rare combination of scoring and sandpaper.

"Both these players, there's a DNA part of them," Treliving said Monday. "We need a little bit more snot to our game and I think they both bring a little bit of that."

Especially at Stanley Cup Playoff time.

"As much as the game has changed, some things have never changed," Treliving said. "At the most important time the rink shrinks. There's no space. You need courage, and we wanted to add players like that."

RELATED: [2023 NHL Free Agent Tracker]

Here's how it went down:

The NHL's free agency period opened at noon ET on July 1, but you wouldn't have known it in Toronto.

In fact, through in the first five or so hours of the League's annual shopping spree, six players who ended last season with the Maple Leafs signed elsewhere: forwards Ryan O'Reilly (Nashville Predators), Michael Bunting (Carolina Hurricanes), Alex Kerfoot (Arizona Coyotes) and Noel Acciari (Pittsburgh Penguins), and defensemen Luke Schenn (Predators) and Justin Holl (Detroit Red Wings). Goalie Erik Kallgren (New Jersey Devils), who played 10 games for the Maple Leafs during the regular season, also left.

In the time that mass exodus was going on, the only signing of a player projected to start the season with Toronto was Reaves, a rugged fourth liner brought in as much for his positive influence in the locker room as on the ice. By giving the 36-year-old a three-year, $4.05 million contract ($1.35 million average annual value), the Maple Leafs were paying a formidable price for trying to improve team chemistry.

To those in town already panicking at Toronto's inactivity, Treliving preached patience. It proved to be insightful advice.

At 5:59 p.m., the Maple Leafs announced the signing of Klingberg to a one-year, $4.15 million contract. The smooth-skating defenseman had 33 points (10 goals, 23 assists) in 67 games for the Anaheim Ducks and Minnesota Wild last season. Although he struggled defensively, Toronto believes he has a strong chance to bounce back, especially on the power play, where the 30-year-old has shone for much of his career.

Exactly 23 hours later, Toronto signed Bertuzzi, one of the top free agents available, to a one-year, $5.5 million contract. The feisty 28-year-old, who was acquired by the Boston Bruins in a trade with the Red Wings on March 2, showed the type of hustle and muscle the Maple Leafs are looking for in the postseason, getting 16 points (four goals, 12 assists) in 21 games for Boston.

The coup de grace: the signing of Domi on Monday, son of former Maple Leafs fan favorite Tie Domi, to a one-year, $3 million deal.

Suddenly, on a damp and gloomy Canada Day long weekend, things looked brighter for the Maple Leafs' long suffering fan base.

And rightly so.

Hired to replace Kyle Dubas on May 31, Treliving has tried to fill some glaring holes he thought needed to be addressed. There are no guarantees his plan will work. There are risks involved, but at least he's being proactive, which should be a requirement for a franchise that this spring won its first playoff series in 19 years.

And in the process, he's addressed several areas of need.

Reaves will keep opponents accountable on the ice and his teammates off it. Though the terms of his contract, foot speed and advanced hockey age are all of concern, his passion, influence and heart are not.

There's one box checked off.

Klingberg is a pricey reclamation project who needs to clean up his game in the defensive zone, which can be disastrous at times. Still, the Maple Leafs need more speed and puck-carrying ability at the position. They can't keep relying on Morgan Rielly to do it.

Check.

Bertuzzi is a top-six forward who plays with snarl and is an upgrade over Bunting. Expect him to be planted directly in the face of opposing goalies and create chaos around the crease, especially on the power play, an element Toronto too often has lacked in the postseason.

Check.

Domi is coming off a 20-goal season in 80 games with the Chicago Blackhawks and Dallas Stars and can play either center or the wing. The 28-year-old plays bigger than his 5-foot-10, 194-pound frame and brings an attitude with his game.

Check.

Treliving said Domi is thrilled to come home to Toronto, where he attended Maple Leafs practices as a boy and befriended the likes of Mats Sundin and Curtis Joseph.

"But this isn't a legacy signing," he said. "This isn't about anything other than we think we're going to get a really good player to help us win games.

"This isn't about signing a guy because he's got some really nice, cute pictures from the Leafs room," he said. "That's nice, but that has nothing to do with him getting signed."

But what happens if the plan blows up on Treliving?

Here's the thing: in the cases of Klingberg, Bertuzzi and Domi, they're low risk moves. All are on one-year deals. If they don't work out, they're gone anyway next offseason.

The three-year contract given to Reaves is an issue, but the average annual value will be less of one with the NHL salary cap projected to go up about $4 million for the 2024-25 season.

The top priority remains signing forwards Auston Matthews and William Nylander. They're entering the final season of their existing contracts, and although negotiations have been ongoing with both, to date the Maple Leafs are closer in talks with Matthews than with Nylander.

Nylander's 10-team no-trade clause kicked in Saturday, but that won't hinder the Maple Leafs from exploring options to move him if his price is too high. After all, Treliving is not about to let history repeat itself.

Forward Johnny Gaudreau finished the 2021-22 season with the Calgary Flames without an extension, and when free agency came around, he decided to leave and sign with the Columbus Blue Jackets, so the Flames did not receive any return for the asset that was Gaudreau.

It's also worth pointing out that Gaudreau's agent is Lewis Gross, who also represents Nylander, so don't expect Treliving to let the same happen with Nylander, should it get to that point.

In the meantime, the Maple Leafs made a qualifying offer to restricted free agent goalie Ilya Samsonov to retain his rights and will try to get him signed. It's part of the numbers crunch assistant GM Brandon Pridham, a shrewd capologist, will have to pull off for a team that is facing cap issues and must clear money.

Will it come as part of a trade? Will they find cap space by buying out goalie Matt Murray?

"We've locked 'Prids' in the room there," Treliving joked. "No food or water until he finds results.

"But we're not as concerned, I think, as everybody else."

Like Treliving said Saturday, it's all part of a roster puzzle that will be a fluid project all summer.

To this point, it's too early to say the Maple Leafs are as good or better than they were a season ago, but with Klingberg, Bertuzzi and Domi, they've improved significantly from where they were through the first afternoon of free agency.