Toronto Maple Leafs Sign Calle Rosen, Andreas Borgman

After a report earlier today that Andreas Borgman was coming to the NHL, the Toronto Maple Leafs have announced they have signed both him and countryman Calle Rosen to two-year entry-level contracts. Rosen had been linked to the Maple Leafs for almost a month now, with reports surfacing that he would sign with the team before long. Mike Babcock told Darren Dreger of TSN just a few days ago that the team would announce some signings soon.

Rosen, 23, is the more experienced of the two and has played the last two seasons for Vaxjo in the Swedish Hockey League. His two-way game is considered ready for at least a part-time role in the NHL, and he will have a chance to break camp with the Maple Leafs on the third-pairing. Both Matt Hunwick and Roman Polak are unrestricted free agents after spending the majority of the season in that role.

Left-handed but capable on both sides of the ice, Rosen is a solid skater that joins the rush and can move the puck effectively out of traffic in his own end. While it’s not a lock that he’ll make much of an impact at the NHL level he provides a depth option that can be inserted right away if need be.

Borgman on the other hand is a little further away at just 21-years old. His path likely begins in the AHL for the Toronto Marlies, where he’ll try to repeat the breakout performance from this season. Named the SHL’s Rookie of the Year, Borgman made the jump from the Allsvenskan quite well and even improved his game further in the postseason. His ceiling likely lands as a depth option as well, but it’s a little less certain at this point.

The Maple Leafs needed depth on the blueline, after going much of the year without injury and still seemingly not having much consistency. While Rosen and Borgman don’t provide the elite right-handed defender they’d like, they do add some options to the system other than prospects Travis Dermott and Andrew Nielsen.