The Toronto Maple Leafs have signed unrestricted free-agent winger Tyler Bertuzzi to a one-year, $5.5M AAV deal. The contract carries a full no-movement clause and a signing bonus of $4.725M, the maximum he is eligible for with this AAV.
This contract is a major win for the Maple Leafs, thanks to the deal’s one-year term. Toronto’s biggest barrier to adding significant talent this offseason has long been seen as the looming expiration of the team’s major contracts next summer.
Since Toronto needs to preserve long-term financial flexibility in order to be able to afford those deals, it was generally believed that they wouldn’t be able to shop for the caliber of players typically earmarked for long-term contracts.
This will be a tight squeeze for the Maple Leafs’ salary cap, but with Jake Muzzin’s $5.625M on long-term injured reserve, the team should just about be able to fit this deal onto their books.
28-year-old winger Bertuzzi has played for two of Toronto’s Original Six rivals, the Detroit Red Wings and Boston Bruins while excelling over the last two years.
Bertuzzi scored 30 goals and 62 points in just 68 games in 2021-22 and although he wasn’t great earlier this season for Detroit, he managed 26 points in 28 combined regular season and playoff games after his trade to the Boston Bruins.
