Leafs sign Hakanpaa to 1-year, $1.47M contract

The Toronto Maple Leafs signed defenseman Jani Hakanpaa to a one-year contract worth $1.47 million, the team announced Wednesday.

Hakanpaa, 32, reportedly agreed to a two-year pact with a $1.5-million annual cap hit on July 1, though that deal never came to fruition. Uncertainty around his health prevented him from officially signing for over two months.

The 6-foot-7 defenseman didn't play for the Dallas Stars after March 16 last season after undergoing a procedure on his knee. The injury is a bone-on-bone issue, The Toronto Sun's Steve Simmons reported in July.

Leafs general manager Brad Treliving said the team was "working through" the situation with Hakanpaa in August, according to The Toronto Sun's Lance Hornby.

Hakanpaa tallied two goals and 12 points in 64 games last year with the Stars. He averaged 18:39 of ice time and accumulated 123 blocked shots. He led Dallas with 196 hits, 86 more than the second-ranked player on the team, despite missing 18 contests.

"One of the areas, looking back at last season, we wanted to address was our penalty kill," Treliving said on July 1. "That's an area that Jani really shines, is his ability to kill penalties. You saw that in Dallas over the years, and specifically this past season."

Hakanpaa has accrued 15 goals and 45 points in 288 games over parts of five seasons with the Anaheim Ducks, Carolina Hurricanes, and Stars. His 883 hits since 2020 - when he became an NHL regular - rank ninth league-wide.

The Maple Leafs had only $400,333 of cap space with a 22-man roster before signing Hakanpaa, according to PuckPedia. Toronto also has Max Pacioretty and Steven Lorentz attending training camp on professional tryouts.