Brandon Montour confirms wild rumour about the Toronto Maple Leafs
Photo credit: USA Today Sports
Fresh off of signing a mega deal with the Seattle Kraken on July 1st, Stanley Cup champion Brandon Montour has confirmed a widely discussed Maple Leafs rumour in which he was involved.
Heading into free agency, Montour was always going to be one of the most attractive options out there. A right-shot defender of his caliber doesn't often become available and when you looked at the market for defensemen this summer, it was pretty strong, but Montour's name was at or near the top of the list in terms of right-shot blueliners.
Well ahead of July 1st, the Leafs had been linked to Montour, and the fit was obvious. In the end, though, Montour inked a 7-year deal in Seattle worth $7,142,857 per season.
He did, however admit during an appearance on TSN's OverDrive on Wednesday that Toronto was definitely a good option for him and that talks between the team and the player did occur.
"There were conversations. I mean, you look at their roster, you look at yourself. And, for me, I looked at myself and saw the player and definitely could help and was intriguing in that week.
There were talks, but again, there's a lot that goes into it with family and what they need and what I need and business decisions and such. But there were definitely talks. We were excited.
We thought about it. But, tons of options for us, and obviously grateful for Seattle, and we're excited about that experience and excited to get down there and kind of get started with, you know, you could say a new organization."
There were talks, but again, there's a lot that goes into it with family and what they need and what I need and business decisions and such. But there were definitely talks. We were excited.
We thought about it. But, tons of options for us, and obviously grateful for Seattle, and we're excited about that experience and excited to get down there and kind of get started with, you know, you could say a new organization."
In the end, the Leafs were forced to go in a bit of a different direction. They first traded for Chris Tanev's rights with the Dallas Stars before inking him to a 6-year deal worth $4.5M per season, before signing Oliver Ekman-Larsson to a 4-year deal at $3.5M per season.
Rumours of a Jani Hakanpaa deal have been aplenty, but as of this moment, no deal has been finalized. If it does get done, contingent on a medical/physical, the deal is expected to be 2 years at $1.5M per season.
| POLL | ||
JUILLET 18 | 301 ANSWERS Brandon Montour confirms wild rumour about the Toronto Maple Leafs Are you upset to learn that the Leafs swung and missed on Brandon Montour this summer? | ||
| Yes, he'd have been a better addition than Tanev | 90 | 29.9 % |
| No, Montour is overrated | 120 | 39.9 % |
| Don't care, just win | 91 | 30.2 % |
| List of polls | ||
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