Hockey·NHL FREE AGENCY

Maple Leafs sign winger Bertuzzi to 1-year deal worth $5.5M US

The Toronto Maple Leafs have signed forward Tyler Bertuzzi to a one-year deal worth $5.5 million US, the team announced Sunday.

28-year-old led Bruins in playoff scoring after being traded from Red Wings in March

A Boston hockey player controls the puck in the corner, with a Detroit player chasing him.
Tyler Bertuzzi (59) had four goals and 10 assists in 29 games for the Red Wings last season before getting traded to the Bruins in March for two draft picks. He added four goals and 12 assists in 21 contests for Boston. (Gregory Shamus/Getty Images)

The Toronto Maple Leafs have signed forward Tyler Bertuzzi to a one-year deal worth $5.5 million US, the team announced Sunday.

Bertuzzi, 28, had four goals and 10 assists in 29 games for the Detroit Red Wings last season before getting traded to the Boston Bruins in March for two draft picks.

The six-foot-one, 186-pound left-winger added four goals and 12 assists in 21 contests for Boston, as well as five goals and five assists to tie Brad Marchand for the Bruins' scoring lead in the playoffs with 10 points in seven games.

He had spent the entirety of his six-plus years in the NHL with the Red Wings prior to the trade. He was Detroit's second-round pick (58th overall) in the 2013 draft.

The Sudbury, Ont., native has 218 points (92 goals, 126 assists) in 326 career games.

Flames ink defenceman Oesterle to 1-year deal

The Calgary Flames signed defenceman Jordan Oesterle to a one-year contract.

The 31-year-old from Dearborn Heights, Mich., compiled four goals and 15 assists in 97 games over the previous two seasons with the Red Wings.

Oesterle has 19 goals and 65 assists in 349 career NHL games with Detroit, Arizona, Chicago and Edmonton.

The Western Michigan University product was a member of the U.S. team that won a bronze medal at the 2018 men's world championship.

The six-foot, 190-pound player's contract is one way and worth $925,000.

The Flames also announced Sunday the re-signing of Dryden Hunt, Martin Pospisil and Colton Poolman.

Calgary acquired Hunt of Cranbrook, B.C., at the trade deadline from the Maple Leafs in exchange for Radim Zohorna.

The 27-year-old winger had five goals and 10 assists in 17 games and another three goals and three assists in nine playoff games for the American Hockey League's Calgary Wranglers.

Pospisil has played four seasons in the Flames' organization. He had four goals and six assists in 20 games for the Wranglers this past season.

The 23-year-old Slovak and Poolman both agreed to one-year contracts worth $775,000.

Poolman enters his fourth season in the Flames' organization.

The defenceman had two goals and 12 assists in 64 games and appeared in nine playoff games for the Wranglers this past season.

Oilers sign Gleason

The Edmonton Oilers signed free agent defenceman Benjamin Gleason to a two-year contract, the team announced Sunday.

The deal carries an average annual value of $775,000.

The first year is a two-way contract, with the second season being one way.

Gleason, 25, joins the Oilers from the Dallas Stars organization where he signed as an undrafted free agent in 2018.

The six-foot-one, 185-pound blue liner played four games for the Stars during the 2018-19 season.

Gleason also spent five seasons with Dallas' AHL affiliate Texas Stars where he tallied 141 points (29 goals, 112 assists) and 188 penalty minutes in 290 games.

Canucks retain Hirose

The Vancouver Canucks have signed defenceman Akito Hirose to a two-year contract, the team announced Sunday.

The team didn't release the financial figures of the contract but said it's a two-way deal for the first year and one way for the second season.

Hirose, 24, appeared in each of Vancouver's final seven games of the 2022-23 regular season after signing a one-year deal with the club on March 29.

In those seven games, the six-foot, 170-pound Hirose had three assists, four penalty minutes and four shots on goal.

Prior to signing with Vancouver during this past season, Hirose completed his third year of college hockey with Minnesota State Mankato.

He registered 27 points (four goals, 23 assists) and 18 penalty minutes in 38 games.

Other notable moves from around the NHL

  • Lias Andersson signed a one-year, two-way contract with the Montreal Canadiens. The 24-year-old forward has 17 points in 110 NHL games, split between the New York Rangers and Los Angeles Kings.

  • Former Oiler Kailer Yamamoto inked a one-year deal worth $1.5 million with the Seattle Kraken. The winger was bought out by the Red Wings a day after being acquired from Edmonton on Thursday.

  • The Tampa Bay Lightning traded three-time Cup winner Patrick Maroon and fellow forward Max Cajkovic to Minnesota for a 2024 seventh-round pick. Tampa Bay retained 20 per cent of Maroon's $1 million salary, which clears enough space to sign a player at the league minimum of $775,000 — perhaps with bonuses.

  • Evan Rodrigues cashed in on his 30-point season with then-defending Stanley Cup champion Colorado by signing a $12 million, four-year contract with now-reigning Eastern Conference champion Florida.

  • The Avalanche re-signed defenceman Jack Johnson to a one-year contract worth $775,000.

  • The Red Wings signed intriguing 26-year-old forward Christian Fischer to a $1.125 million contract for next season. Fischer was not tendered a qualifying offer by Arizona.

With files from Stephen Whyno of The Associated Press, CBC Sports

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