- Maple Leafs signed Nick Blankenburg to a one-year, $1.4 million contract Sunday
- The 28-year-old made the team after arriving on a professional tryout
- Read below for how he fits into Toronto’s blue line
Nick Blankenburg turned a training camp invite into a paycheck.
The Toronto Maple Leafs signed the defenseman to a one-year contract worth $1.4 million on Sunday, according to TSN’s Chris Johnston. Blankenburg spent camp on a professional tryout after going unsigned for most of the summer, and four preseason games were enough to lock down a roster spot.
He’d been chasing this contract since his tryout began two weeks ago:
The numbers on the deal came from PuckPedia, and Gino Hard had the terms shortly after it came together:
He appeared in two of Toronto’s four exhibition games, skating a little over 19 minutes a night. He picked up an assist in Wednesday’s 4-2 win over Ottawa and closed out the preseason at minus-1.
Toronto already has its top four settled with Morgan Rielly, Darren Raddysh, Jake McCabe and Chris Tanev. Blankenburg profiles as the seventh defenseman, and head coach Jim Hiller can rotate him with Troy Stecher on the third pair if the group stays healthy.
It’s a quick landing spot for a player who sat unsigned deep into September. His two-year, $775,000 deal with the Nashville Predators expired this summer after he signed there as a free agent in July 2024.
Last season was the best of his career. He split it between Nashville and Colorado after a deadline trade, finishing with 8 goals, 16 assists and 24 points across 61 games. Only two goals and three assists came in his 12 games with the Avalanche, but he added a goal in five playoff games as Colorado reached the Western Conference Final.
Columbus signed Blankenburg as an undrafted free agent out of Michigan back in 2022. He has 18 goals and 40 assists in 176 career games across three organizations, and he suited up for the United States at the 2022 World Championship.
Puck drops Tuesday against Montreal, and Blankenburg will be in the lineup with a contract instead of a tryout.
