Leafs try to answer off-season needs with Hainsey, Moore signings
TORONTO — The Toronto Maple Leafs hope to have found answers to a few off-season needs on the first day of NHL free agency.
The Leafs signed Ron Hainsey to upgrade their defence, Dominic Moore to prop up the fourth line centre spot and Curtis McElhinney to remain in the backup role behind No. 1 Frederik Andersen.
All were glaring needs heading into the summer months.
If not the high-impact defender they were probably hoping for this summer, Hainsey is nonetheless an upgrade to a defence that needed help — especially in the top-four. The 36-year-old, who signed for two years with an annual cap hit of US$3 million, spent the back half of last season on the top pair of the Stanley Cup champion Pittsburgh Penguins.