Canadiens sign former Canucks free agent winger Toffoli to 4-year contract

Oct 12 2020, 6:08 pm

Tyler Toffoli is heading east, signing a four-year free agent contract worth $4.25 million per season with the Montreal Canadiens.

The 28-year-old winger was traded to the Vancouver Canucks from the Los Angeles Kings in February, and fit in well with his new team on the Canucks’ top line with Elias Pettersson and J.T. Miller. He scored 44 points, including 24 goals, last season in 68 games split between the Canucks and Kings.

Toffoli is just the latest free agent to leave the Canucks this offseason, as Jacob Markstrom and Chris Tanev signed in Calgary, while Troy Stecher signed in Detroit.

While Toffoli’s $4.25 million cap hit was less than expected, the Canucks still couldn’t afford him because they need to add a top four defenceman on the right side to replace Tanev. According to CapFriendly.com, the Canucks have less than $8 million remaining in cap space, but still have three spots to fill, and still have to re-sign restricted free agents Jake Virtanen and Adam Gaudette.

The Canadiens, meanwhile, are now pressed right up against the cap following the signings of Josh Anderson and Joel Edmundson.

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