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Toronto Maple Leafs Re-Sign Travis Dermott to 2-Year Deal

ByStephen Nixon|
TORONTO, ON - FEBRUARY 15: Travis Dermott #23 of the Toronto Maple Leafs skates against the Ottawa Senators during an NHL game at Scotiabank Arena on February 15, 2021 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The Senators defeated the Maple Leafs 6-5 in overtime. (Photo by Claus Andersen/Getty Images)
TORONTO, ON - FEBRUARY 15: Travis Dermott #23 of the Toronto Maple Leafs skates against the Ottawa Senators during an NHL game at Scotiabank Arena on February 15, 2021 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The Senators defeated the Maple Leafs 6-5 in overtime. (Photo by Claus Andersen/Getty Images)

The Toronto Maple Leafs have inked Travis Dermott to a new two-year deal worth $1.5M AAV.

This is a great move by the Toronto Maple Leafs ahead of the Seattle Expansion Draft, Securing Dermott for two more years at this price is great value for the youngster.

The 24-year-old was drafted by the Leafs in the 2015 NHL Entry Draft and has done an admirable job over the past few seasons. After developing with the Toronto Marlies and eventually being a huge reason towards their Calder Cup victory in 2018, Dermott has fit in well on the third-pair.

At $1.5M per season for the next two years, his number is perfect. The Leafs gave Wayne Simmonds the same price-tag last year, so getting Dermott for that price is awesome value.

If Dermott develops and becomes a top-four defenseman in the next two years, his value is even better, but he should be the team’s fifth or sixth best defenseman.

Toronto Maple Leafs Ink Dermott to Two-Year Deal

The reason why this move is a little surprising is because of the timing, however it makes a ton of sense.

With the Seattle Expansion Draft looming, the Leafs are going to lose a quality player. At this rate, everything is pointing towards it being Justin Holl or Alex Kerfoot, but maybe the Leafs thought it could be Dermott as well.

By signing him to such a team-friendly deal,  he could become a more enticing choice  for Seattle..

That said, it seems more likely that the Leafs feel comfortable losing Alex Kerfoot or Justin Holl and will now protect Dermott instead. At 24-years-old (five years younger than Holl), the team probably values Dermott over those two players.

If the Leafs did protect Dermott, their defense would now be intact with a similar top-six as last year, with Holl’s future impending.

  • Morgan Rielly (Protected) – T.J. Brodie (Protected)
  • Jake Muzzin (Protected) – Justin Holl (Exposed)
  • Travis Dermott (Protected) – Rasmus Sandin (Protection not Needed)

Who knows what the Leafs will end up doing with Dermott, but it’s better to have signed him now instead of allowing any other team to offer-sheet him or allow Seattle to get at him early.

If the Leafs decided to protect Dermott and expose Kerfoot and Holl, I would be totally fine with that and I think a lot of the fanbase would be as well. Dermott has a lot more upside than Holl and the team can find better value at $3.5M for their third-line centre.

It’s great to see Dermott back on the Leafs, so it’ll be incredibly interesting what the team decides to do when it comes to their protection list for the Seattle Expansion Draft in the next few weeks.

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