*Photo from the New York Times*
One year can do a lot for a player. According to Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet, defenseman Oliver Ekman-Larsson has signed a 4 year, $14 million contract with the Toronto Maple Leafs. The deal has been made official by the team.
Just before free agency opened last season, Ekman-Larsson was bought out by the Vancouver Canucks and hit the open market. After one year with the Florida Panthers, Ekman-Larsson entered free agency this time with some more intrigue, and along came Toronto.
Despite the fact that Ekman-Larsson will be paid by 3 teams this season, Toronto still gave him a big deal. He'll make $3.5 million annually and will have $7 million spread over 3 years as signing bonus money, including a $3.5 million signing bonus this year. He also gets a modified no trade clause in the form of a 16 team no trade list.
Last season, Ekman-Larsson recorded the highest point total he's had in a season since his 44 points in 2018-2019. He had 9 goals and 23 assists for 32 points, averaging 18:24 of ice time across 80 games. He chipped in a pair of goals and 4 assists over 24 playoff games.
Ekman-Larsson said of his new deal that "Four years on the contract meant a lot. It was a good end to my year just knowing that I had a good year and that Toronto was interested. I want to play until I'm super old and they carry me off the ice. So it means a lot. I always look at it that I want to push myself. I don't really look at the age. I feel a lot better than I did when I was 25 to be honest with you body-wise. I'm always looking to get better and I feel like I've taken steps in the right direction besides the past two years. I felt like I was a good player and kind of found my game again."
The signing of Ekman-Larsson gives the Maple Leafs another defenseman who can log some power play minutes, as he had one goal and 10 assists on the power play for the Panthers last season. He's also a two time all star as a first round pick from the 2009 draft.
Maple Leafs GM Brad Treliving said "When I look at the defense right now, it has a good blend. You've got some puck movers, you have got some size, some penalty killing. The addition of Oliver gives you another option on the power play. We've got lefties and righties. Defensemen are so hard to get so it opens up different options for us as we move forward here in the summer."
Ekman-Larsson joins Chris Tanev and Jani Hakanpaa as new additions on the back end for the Maple Leafs, with Jake McCabe, Morgan Rielly, and Timothy Liljegren already in place as defensemen.
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