The Toronto Maple Leafs made a whole lot of additions in free agency this summer but none of the signings up front at forward could be as important as Jack Roslovic. Especially considering he already has familiarity with the most important player on the roster.
It's a point that has been repeated ad nauseum by this point of the offseason, but Roslovic laced up next to Leafs captain Auston Matthews during their time together at the U.S. National Development Program. While that is surely not the only reason why Toronto signed him to a two-year, $8-million contract, it certainly doesn't hurt.
Plus, it seems like he's overjoyed to get to play with Matthews again.
Jack Roslovic pumped to play with Auston Matthews again
On a recent episode of the Leafs Morning Take podcast, Roslovic expressed his excitement to sign in Toronto and get reunited with his old pal. It's been over a decade since the two played next to each other, but it is still clearly a good thing to have.
Jack Roslovic is FIRED UP to run it back with Auston Matthews in Toronto.
— Leafs Morning Take (@LMTake_) August 3, 2026
"It's really fun when you can come back & play with someone you once had a lot of success with.."@thegoldenmuzzy | @Jay_D_Rosehill | @TLNdc pic.twitter.com/xhYgez8i6b
“Yeah, I’ve talked to Auston a lot," Roslovic said. "He’s been awesome, helping me figure out where to live, what to do around town, and even introducing me to the staff and people around the organization… It’s really fun when you get the chance to play with someone you once had a lot of success with.
"I’ve heard their locker room is really strong, and we’ve already been chatting in the group messages, getting to know everyone. It seems like it’s going to be a good time, and everyone’s ready to get to work. So it’s exciting.”
The work will really start when the Leafs open up training camp next month, but it's good that Roslovic appears to already be here in the city and putting his nose to the grindstone. It's a massive year for the Leafs and with a whole lot of new additions to the team, the potential ceiling of this group is really an unknown.
Roslovic is certainly the biggest addition offensively to the team, though. The 29-year-old forward is coming of back-to-back campaigns where he scored 20 goals and while spending a large portion of his time at center.
On the projected lineup for the Leafs, Roslovic is slotted to start the season on the wing next to Matthews and that could mean a huge jump in his production and we could really see some chemistry reignite between the two American forwards.
We just can't wait for actual hockey to start.
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