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.
Toronto Maple Leafs Eyeing Swedish Help On Defense
For all the success the Toronto Maple Leafs rookie forward group had this season, with Auston Matthews immediately becoming #1 center, Mitch Marner proving his size doesn’t change the fact that he’s a wizard with the puck, and William Nylander coming into his own as a possession-driving forward, their was still (at least) one thing wrong with the team. Their defense, even with the addition of 25-year old rookie Nikita Zaitsev, were often criticized for giving up leads and looking lost in their own end.
So they entered this season with a clear direction: add depth on defense. Morgan Rielly, Jake Gardiner and Zaitsev gave them three reliable options—ones that are now all locked up for next season—but they needed to fix the bottom pair if nothing else. Matt Hunwick and Roman Polak are both free agents, and though at times held their own were generally a weakness on the team.
When Mike Babcock finished the season, he immediately said he’d be heading to the World Championships to watch a few players, and this week told Darren Dreger that the team would soon be announcing a few European signings. It seems like those will include at least two Swedish defenders, namely Calle Rosen and Philip Holm. Rosen was linked to the Maple Leafs last month, while yesterday a report surfaced from a Swedish source that said Holm was also committed to the Maple Leafs.
Rosen and Holm both played this season for Vaxjo of the SHL, and are even usual partners there. Both shoot from the left-side, and have a common ability to skate the puck out of traffic and move it with crisp passes. During the year Holm, the elder of the two at 25, recorded 21 points while Rosen notched 19 in 11 fewer games.
With Holm getting into his first two matches at the World Championships for Sweden, Babcock likely has seen him up close. His three point effort against the Italians today would certainly impress, as he keeps up with the other outstanding defenders on Sweden.
Though nothing has been officially announced just yet, Rosen and Holm would definitely add a new wrinkle to the Maple Leafs defense group next season, and perhaps even get another chance to play together under the bright lights of professional hockey. While Maple Leafs GM Lou Lamoriello said recently that there is one player in particular in the minors that they’d like to take a look at, these Swedish defenders may block any prospect from making the jump just yet.