Brandon Montour's near-move to the Maple Leafs unveiled
Photo credit: Buffalo News
The Toronto Maple Leafs have already made significant moves on their defense this summer, and as Brandon Montour reveals, they were close to securing another major deal.
As it turned out, Brandon Montour opted not to sign with the Leafs. Instead, the veteran defenseman secured the largest deal of his career, inking a seven-year contract with the Seattle Kraken valued at nearly $50 million.
The #SeaKraken have agreed to terms with defenseman Brandon Montour on a seven-year contract ($7.14M AAV).
In one of sports' most challenging media markets, the Toronto Maple Leafs hold a significant allure: many NHL players grew up in Ontario as fans. This factor enticed stars like John Tavares and Mitch Marner to join the team. Recently, it nearly lured Brandon Montour as well.
"You obviously get that, especially now - just little things of me being up north right now, even my friends and neighbors have caught wind," he said of his being linked to the Leafs. "People obviously watch that, fans of the Leafs and Canada. Just being from here, your friends and family hear it on the radio and the rumors. I guess for myself in the last three or four months was just so focused on trying to win this thing for our team."
While the appeal of playing for his hometown team was undeniable, Montour clarified that discussions with Toronto didn't progress as far as one might expect from an Ontario native.
"That was something for my agent to kind of control and work on while my whole focus was on hockey," he explained. "There were conversations - you just look at their roster and look at yourself. For me, I saw the player that could help and it was intriguing in that week. There were talks, but there's a lot that goes into it with family with what they need and what I need, business decisions and such. There were definitely talks - we were excited about it and thought about it, but there were tons of options, and we're obviously grateful for Seattle. We're excited about that experience and excited to get down there and get started, with you could say, a new organization."
Ultimately, Montour chose Seattle, who gave him a whopping 7x7 deal, something that most Maple Leafs fans simply couldn't swallow.
However, the team opted to secure the signings of Jani Hakanpaa, Chris Tanev, and Oliver Ekman-Larsson instead. With aspirations of reaching the Stanley Cup Finals, they prioritize depth over singular star power.
Source: House of Hockey
Brandon Montour opens up on how close he was to joining the Maple Leafs
Brandon Montour opens up on how close he was to joining the Maple Leafs
| POLL | ||
18 JUILLET | 156 ANSWERS Brandon Montour's near-move to the Maple Leafs unveiled Was signing with the Seattle Kraken the right decision for Montour? | ||
| Yes | 82 | 52.6 % |
| No | 74 | 47.4 % |
| List of polls | ||
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