The Toronto Maple Leafs made the move. They showed they aren’t satisfied with the direction of the franchise, and a new regime led by John Chayka didn’t waste any time making big moves. They fired Craig Berube and brought in Jim Hiller. Just as we are all deciding how we feel about that hire, the Maple Leafs made arguably an even bigger move by trading for the signing rights to the biggest defensive free agent in the league.
On Friday, the Maple Leafs traded for Darren Raddysh. Not only did they get the best free agent defenseman on the market coming off his best offensive season, but they got him from their division rival, the Tampa Bay Lightning.
It was a tidy piece of business for Chayka and Co. However, it comes with a serious amount of risk. See, Raddysh has never been the type of player who deserved this much attention. He struggled to make the NHL with the Chicago Blackhawks and New York Rangers’ organizations prior to breaking out with the Lightning. Even then, this was by far the best season of his career.
We know that defensemen often take time to develop, but waiting until one turns 29 to give a team their best is extreme. Many think the contract Chayka gave to Raddysh, which is for eight years and north of $8 million per season, will age like milk. But what if it doesn’t? This might sound crazy to say, but what if this works out for the Maple Leafs?
There is one specific player that comes to mind when thinking about a reliable offensive defenseman late in his 30s and even his 40s, and he’s still playing in the league today. Brent Burns was also a late bloomer. He didn’t find his game until he turned 30. He was even playing right wing for some organizations.
Burns scored exactly 300 points in the four seasons after he turned 30. If Raddysh does that, the Maple Leafs will be more than satisfied. Even if he drops off at the end of the contract, which pays him until he turns 38, the expected rising salary cap will make it less and less painful. So, as long as Raddysh continues to be an offensive defenseman who hits at least 50 points per season, this would be a worthwhile investment by the Maple Leafs.
Darren Raddysh just might be really good for all eight years of his contract
Burns has remained a reliable offensive defenseman throughout his 30s and early 40s. While age must be a consideration for the Maple Leafs when they sign contracts, this might be a unique situation where a player can be valuable late into his 30s. There’s precedence here for why this might work.
Signing Burns is a risk every year, as well, but it’s worked out almost every season. Just this past year, Burns had 12 goals and 35 points. He’s 41 years old.
We’re talking about a 30-year-old player who is clearly in his prime. We tend to look at the length of contracts and project our fears onto them. A lot can happen in eight years, including a player being reliable throughout.
Add us as a preferred source on Google