The Toronto Maple Leafs made the second of their two PTO (professional tryout agreement) skaters official today, announcing the signing of forward Steven Lorentz to a one-year, $775,000 contract.
🖋️ We’ve signed Max Pacioretty and Steven Lorentz to one-year contracts and Cade Webber to a two-year contract extension pic.twitter.com/odzWckDngm
— Toronto Maple Leafs (@MapleLeafs) October 7, 2024
The signing is part of a trio of transactions the Maple Leafs announced today, including the signing of longtime Montreal Canadiens forward Max Pacioretty and the extension of defensive prospect Cade Webber.
Hailing from Kitchener, Ontario, Lorentz is set to join the fourth team of his young career to date, having played for the Carolina Hurricanes, San Jose Sharks, and most recently, the Stanley Cup-winning Florida Panthers. He’s an efficient bottom-six checking forward who looks like he’ll be starting the season on the Maple Leafs’ fourth line, alongside David Kampf and Ryan Reaves. He and Reaves connected for a beautiful goal that earns you extra points with the coach, with both players finishing their checks and resulting in the turnover.
LOCOMOTIVE LORENTZ!! 👀 pic.twitter.com/o1B9xZmQVp
— Toronto Maple Leafs (@MapleLeafs) October 5, 2024
While Lorentz may not play every game for the Leafs this year, he’s a reliable bottom-six forward who will bring exactly what head coach Craig Berube values in his fourth line, and frankly the whole team. He’s not going to appear on the scoresheet much, bringing a career high of 19 points last season and only three in regular season 38 games, but he did score two playoff goals for Florida and would not be expected to contribute in the means of points.
Lorentz told Sportsnet’s Luke Fox that he turned down offers from teams for actual contracts to try and carve out a roster spot with the Maple Leafs, saying that he’s not the type for money to be a big factor.
“I’m not a guy who’s just going to jump on the first offer and the most amount of money,” Lorentz said to Fox. “I want to be in the right spot, a team that I believe is going to do well. I thought for a few years now that my game could kind of suit well in this system, especially with the top-level talent in the top lines. I thought I could come in and use my size and my speed and carve out an identity in the bottom six.”
The Maple Leafs begin the season on October 9 on the road against the Montreal Canadiens.
