The Toronto Maple Leafs have taken care of some prospect business, signing Mikko Kokkonen to a three-year entry-level contract. The deal begins in 2022-23 and will carry an average annual value of $847K.
Kokkonen, 21, has actually already played in 11 games for the Toronto Marlies, joining the club at the end of the season on a tryout contract. He managed seven points in those 11 games and gave Maple Leafs fans a taste of what might be on the horizon.
This season, back in Finland, the young left-shot defenseman had 15 points in 58 games playing for the Lahti Pelicans, his fourth full season in Liiga already. A member of the bronze medal-winning Finnish World Junior team a year ago, the third-round pick has played a huge number of games on the most competitive stages already and will likely join the Marlies once again down the stretch this season.
Of course, the obvious question would be if Kokkonen could help the Maple Leafs immediately after they lost both Ilya Lyubushkin and Justin Holl to injury last night. Since this contract doesn’t start until 2022-23, he is not eligible for recall.