The Toronto Maple Leafs have made a concerted effort to upgrade their defense throughout the offseason. They have already added hard-hitting defenseman Chris Tanev and goalie Anthony Stolarz, along with hiring Craig Berube as head coach. Those moves should upgrade the Maple Leafs’ ability to defend. Insider Nick Alberga is reporting that Toronto is also in the market for veteran forward Max Pacioretty.
Pacioretty, 35, has had multiple injuries in recent years, and he has not played more than 48 games since the 2019-20 season. In the ensuing four years, Pacioretty has played 48, 39, 5 and 47 games. He has had two Achilles injuries that have kept him out of the lineup for significant stretches, and he has also spent quite a bit of time rehabbing from those injuries. He has also had other maladies of the nagging variety.
The Hockey News reported that the Detroit Red Wings have interest in Pacioretty. If the Maple Leafs and Red Wings are going to pursue the 6-2, 217-pound left wing, he may want to wait until just before the start of training camp to finalize the deal. That would give him a chance to shop his services a bit longer and perhaps improve the terms of the deal
However, after missing as much time as he has in the last four seasons, he may just want to finalize a deal and make sure he is in the best shape possible during training camp and for the start of the 2024-25 season.
Pacioretty could be a game-changing player for Leafs
Pacioretty has been well-traveled in recent years, in part because of his injury history. He spent the first 10 years of his career with the Montreal Canadiens before spending four seasons with the Vegas Golden Knights. He has since played one year with the Carolina Hurricanes and another with the Washington Capitals.
The big forward became an impact player in the 2011-12 season with the Canadiens when he scored 33 goal and 32 assists.
That season marked the first time he scored 30 goals or more, and he has reached that figure six times in his career.
His best season came in 2014-15 when he potted 37 goals and added 30 assists. He finished a league-best plus-38 for the season and he also scored 10 game-winning goals.
Pacioretty has demonstrated that he can be a force when he is between the circles and attack opposing goaltenders when his team is on the power play. He scored 10 power play goals in 2013-14, and he was a force with the man advantage in each of the next four seasons.
While Pacioretty is not a defensive stalwart, he does play a 200-foot game and has shown he can intercept passes and turn defense into offense with his aggressive first step.
