Connor Dewar
Acquired last season at the trade deadline from the Minnesota Wild in exchange for the Leafs 2026 4th round pick and forward Dmitry Ovchinnikov, Connor Dewar played a vital role on the team’s fourth line down the stretch.
In addition, he also became a key member of the penalty killing unit as well. Despite his strength being his defense, Dewar still managed to put up one goal and five points in 17 games following the deadline with the Leafs.
He also possesses a surprising scoring touch, as he reached double digits in goals with the Wild prior to joining Toronto.
Thus far, Dewar has been kept out of action this training camp after having offseason shoulder surgery. Although, he has now since practiced in a regular sweater with the team in recent days.
Nevertheless, he will likely need at least some more time to get up to speed, so there’s a good chance that he will not be on the Leafs roster to start the season as he works himself back into game form.
Jani Hakanpaa
One of the Leafs weirdest offseason signings was Jani Hakanpaa who has a knee injury so bad many thought he'd never play again. The defensive guru adds tremendous size and strength to the Maple Leafs back end and will likely be played of much better, higher upside players by Leafs head coach Craig Berube.
If you are looking for a slow player who is good at defense but hurts his team more than he helps due to a penchant for getting hemmed in his own zone, Hakanpaa is the player for you. He won’t be lighting up the scoreboard, with his 15 goals and 45 career points in 288 games in the NHL. But he will try to make sure the opponents won’t do the same as well when he is on the ice.
Hakanpaa has just recently got back on the ice and started practising with the Leafs. He had been recovering all summer from his knee injury that ultimately required an arthroscopic procedure to resolve. However, in terms of his progress, Hakanpaa is a little more behind than Dewar. As a result, he will likely start the season on LTIR for more reasons than one while he works his way back into game shape.
In terms of a timeline, Hakanpaa likely won’t suit up in a Leafs uniform until probably some time in November at the earliest, if he ends up doing well enough to make the team.