Toronto Maple Leafs sign Mark Giordano for another 2 years

Today, instead of taking the long weekend, the Toronto Maple Leafs signed defenseman Mark Giordano to a two-year contract extension that will carry a salary cap of $800,000.

Toronto-born Giordano was acquired at the 2022 NHL trade deadline with Colin Blackwell for two second-round picks and a third, in what was at the time a trade flight and confirmed at the end of the regular season.

Giordano helped shore up the Maple Leafs blue line heading into the playoffs, with 12 points in 20 games, and fell in love with his regular partner in Timothy Liljegren.

Re-signing Giordano was a big desire for many Maple Leafs fans, but the cost was concerning, with some people projecting his value in the free agent market at around $6 million, others putting it between 2.5 and $3 million.

Kyle Dubas has already been successful in bringing in and keeping veteran players from the Toronto area, and now Giordano lines up with Wayne Simmonds and Jason Spezza in that column.

The Maple Leafs are not done yet, they still have work to do with nine other players to make decisions on:

Two more years for the 38-year-old defenseman means he will most likely retire as a Maple Leaf, hopefully with a Stanley Cup ring or two.