The Toronto Maple Leafs announced the signing of defenseman Simon Benoit on Monday. His contract is for one year with a league minimum cap hit of $775,000.
The Toronto Maple Leafs depth on defense was/is an area of concern ahead of training camp. Adding Benoit gives the Leafs eight NHL defensemen going into training camp and pre-season play.
Benoit adds a physical element to the Leafs defense that is currently lacking.
Last season, Benoit had 128 blocked shots and 216 hits in 78 games for the Anaheim Ducks, with an average of 19:21 minutes of ice time. He also averaged three goals and seven assists for ten points. (Stats from hockey-reference.com)
Toronto Maple Leafs Sign Simon Benoit for Defensive Depth
I’m sure Benoit is happy to join a team like the Leafs that will most likely be playoff-bound and challenging for the Stanley Cup after three seasons in the Ducks organization near the bottom of the standings. He is not guaranteed a roster spot with the Leafs. He’ll still need to earn his spot through training camp and pre-season.
If the Leafs start the season with seven defensemen, Benoit and Conor Timmins will potentially be battling for the seventh spot. Unless a trade happens to offload one of their defensemen, the Toronto Maple Leafs will likely start the season with Morgan Rielly, T.J. Brodie, Jake McCabe, Timothy Liljegren, John Klingberg, and Mark Giordano as their main six guys.
With Giordano beginning to slow as his age starts to show, the Leafs will need someone who can platoon with him.
Conor Timmins showed promise last season in the 25 games he played for the Leafs. Timmons registered 14 points in those 25 games while averaging 15:37 minutes of ice time. Due to the Leafs current salary cap structure, only one of Timmins or Benoit will likely make the roster out of training camp.
Of course, all this assumes no prospect or or PTO ends up winning a job in camp, and there of course could still be a trade since the Leafs are over the cap.
As I’ve said before, both will not make the roster unless a trade happens, so we will need to wait and see what else Treliving has up his sleeve this off-season. Adding Benoit for added depth is a good decision by Treliving.
Losing Schenn in free agency and having Muzzin on LTIR leaves the Leafs lacking a defenseman who other teams need to watch out for. At 6’3 and 203 Lbs, Benoit is a good physical presence to have in your lineup.