The Toronto Maple Leafs signed Max Pacioretty to a PTO earlier this week, and while fans were perplexed, GM Brad Treliving believes everything is going as planned.
While Pacioretty has had a hard couple of seasons with Carolina and Washington, he is not far from averaging 24 goals in four seasons with Vegas. While his time there did not end on the best note, there is no doubt that his statistics speak for themselves.
So when Toronto signed the former Montreal Canadiens captain to a PTO earlier, it left people questioning if the Leafs should focus their attention elsewhere. Treliving tried to assuage those concerns when speaking to the media on September 12.
“We will see (what Pacioretty’s role is),’ Treliving said. ‘With Max, he is a veteran guy who has been beset by injuries in the last couple of years.We brought Max in probably about a month or three weeks ago for a couple of days, and he was very open to not only going through a medical exam but also getting on the ice for us to see where he is at.’
It seems like Pacioretty has been on Toronto’s radar for the better part of a month, and for the last couple weeks rumors have swirled about Pacioretty signing a PTO. Treliving noted that this opportunity was different from previous years, as Pacioretty was more focused on being healthy and rehabbing as opposed to training as he normally would.
“He feels that he wasn’t where he wanted to be physically last year, but this summer, he was able to have a full training regimen.”
It’s relieving to hear that Pacioretty is at the level where he can train as he would in previous years and be prepared to play in a full slate come October. His role on the team isn’t necessarily determined yet but it’s obvious he was brought in to bring some veteran leadership and a bit of scoring depth down the bottom of the lineup.
“Our expectation is that he is going to come in and give us more depth,” Treliving said. “All of that stuff is going to sort itself out in camp.”
However, it doesn’t seem like Pacioretty is going to be receiving a full-ride scholarship to the Maple Leafs though, as the GM was sure to mention that there are no freebies here and everyone needs to earn their spot.
“Everyone is competing for a job, right?” the general manager added. “You have to go through camp. My expectation is that he is going to be with us, but everyone has to earn their spot here.’
It will definitely be exciting to see how Pacioretty will fit into the lineup, and it makes the heated rivalry between the Maple Leafs and Canadiens just a bit more special.
