Maple Leafs Send Defenseman Down to Toronto Marlies

Signed to a 1-year deal worth $775K on the second day of free agency this past off-season, Dakota Mermis has missed the entirety of the season and training camp as he recovered from off-season jaw surgery.

The 30-year-old took to the ice for practice with the Leafs for the first time earlier this week, although he had been skating by himself previously.

Wednesday, the Leafs announced that Mermis had been assigned to the Toronto Marlies of the AHL on a conditioning stint.

The move will not only allow Mermis to get into some game action, but it will also buy the Leafs some time to figure out their roster situation with Mermis likely to be activated from LTIR soon.

The most likely scenario is that Mermis is placed on waivers at the end of his conditioning stint and remains with the Marlies given that Jani Hakanpaa is healthy and Philippe Myers did not look out of place in his lone game for the Leafs this season.

The undrafted defenseman from Alton, Illinois isn't the biggest defenseman, listed at just 6'0 and 197-pounds, but he brings a physical edge and some sandpaper to the organization with his game.

Mermis has skated in a total of 74 NHL games since making his debut with the former Arizona Coyotes and now the Utah Hockey Club during the 2017-18 season. 47 of his 74 games came last season while he was with the Minnesota Wild where he scored 3 goals and tallied 8 points.