{"id":32208,"date":"2018-07-01T13:32:57","date_gmt":"2018-07-01T17:32:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/?p=32208"},"modified":"2020-12-26T16:39:17","modified_gmt":"2020-12-26T21:39:17","slug":"toronto-maple-leafs-sign-free-agent-josh-jooris","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/2018\/07\/01\/toronto-maple-leafs-sign-free-agent-josh-jooris\/","title":{"rendered":"Toronto Maple Leafs Sign Free Agent Josh Jooris"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Toronto Maple Leafs<\/a> have signed free agent center Josh Jooris<\/a><\/strong> to a one-year contract. The deal is worth $650,000 next season. This contract carries him through the 2018-19 season.<\/p>\n

https:\/\/twitter.com\/FriedgeHNIC\/status\/1013458207295954944<\/p>\n

Josh Jooris Signs With the Maple Leafs<\/h1>\n

Jooris has played for the Calgary Flames<\/a>, New York Rangers<\/a>, Arizona Coyotes<\/a>, Carolina Hurricanes<\/a> and Pittsburgh Penguins<\/a> in his four-year NHL career. He has put up 23 goals and 32 assists for 55<\/em> career points in 213 career games. He was signed as an undrafted free agent out of Union College in the NCAA by Calgary.<\/p>\n

Last season he scored three goals and three assists for six points in 40 NHL games. He also added 16 minutes in penalties. His possession numbers were 50.6 percent Corsi\u00a0and a relative Corsi of -3.8. The Burlington, Ontario native also played 11 games in the AHL with the Charlotte Checkers and Wilkes-Barre\/Scranton Penguins.<\/p>\n

His best season was his rookie year in 2014-15 with the Flames when he posted 12 goals and 12 assists in 60 games. He’s since been a journeyman pivot for multiple teams<\/a>.<\/p>\n

What This Means For The Future<\/strong><\/h2>\n

He’s not the biggest free agent center signing of the day by Toronto, but Jooris can be helpful. The former Dutchmen can fight for a spot as a fourth-line center and fill in if there’s an injury on the bottom six.<\/p>\n

Jooris could also be sent to the Calder Cup champion Toronto Marlies if he doesn’t find a place on the big club. He’d be a welcome addition to the locker room and help the younger players. Locker room leaders can be hard to come by, but he can fill that need.<\/p>\n

He can still be a useful part of a Maple Leafs team that now has the weight of large expectations on their shoulders. General manager Kyle Dubas will find a role for him.<\/p>\n

Main Photo
\nEmbed from Getty Images<\/a>