Few teams have been busier across the NHL than the Toronto Maple Leafs over the last week who acquired defenceman Darren Raddysh from the Tampa Bay Lightning in a sign and trade deal Friday. The deal will see Raddysh sign an 8 year contract extension with an average annual value of $8.5M per season before joining the Leafs in exchange for a 2026 fifth round draft pick.
“We are thrilled to add a defenceman of Darren’s caliber to our organization,” Maple Leafs general manager John Chayka said in a statement. “Darren has emerged as one of the NHL’s premier two-way defensemen, combining elite puck-moving ability with poise, competitiveness, and strong play in all three zones. He strengthens our blue line in every situation and is exactly the type of player we want helping lead this team.”
The 30 year old blue liner set career highs in points (70), goals (22), assists (48), +/- (+21), power play points (26), and average time on ice (22:42) last season. The impending free agent was set to become one of the more intriguing options on the market for defence-needy teams on July 1st, but will instead return to his hometown on a long term deal.
Originally signed as an undrafted free agent by the Chicago Blackhawks, Raddysh was eventually traded to the New York Rangers, before joining the Tampa Bay Lightning. The 6’1″ defender would make his NHL debut during the 2021-22 season with the Lightning, appearing in 4 games for the club.
Raddysh’s new $68M deal is a sizeable pay raise from the $1.95M contract he just wrapped up in Florida. His signing is the second deal made in the last few days to reshape Toronto’s blue line which recently acquired Emil Andrae from Philadelphia as part of a goalie swap deal between the two clubs. Veteran Simon Benoit was involved in that deal, while Maple Leafs mainstay Morgan Rielly has been rumoured to be on the trading block this summer as well.
Photo: TheAHL. This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic license.