Leafs Insider Reveals Veteran on PTO Secures Spot on the Roster
A Maple Leafs reporter provided some insider information that Steven Lorentz, who was on a PTO, appears to have already made the team for the upcoming season.
Steven Lorentz had a few different offers around the league but chose the Toronto Maple Leafs because he wanted to be part of bringing another Stanley Cup into the city he grew up cheering for. The decision to go with his hometown wasn't based on emotional feelings, though Lorentz knows the Leafs have what it takes to make another championship run.
Steven Lorentz spoke to Sportsnet's Luke Fox about what led him to sign a PTO with the Leafs: The list went on and on; working with both GM Brad Treliving and head coach Craig Berube. Their vision, leadership, as well as culture, fit within the team, and made it an easy sell for Lorentz to buy into their plan.
While the Leafs and Steven Lorentz have danced around potential deals in the past, it would appear the timing seems right for both sides at this juncture. With Treliving and Berube at the helm, perhaps this was that combination of leadership that finally pushed a deal over the line. Lorentz knows what to expect from this opportunity, given he lived what it took to win a Stanley Cup when he was a member of the Florida Panthers. That defensive reliability, in turn, would make him a vital piece to Berube's system.
Presently on a PTO competing in training camp, Steven Lorentz has been centering the fourth line beside David Kampf and Ryan Reaves. To date, he has been strong enough that most think he is close to inking a permanent deal with the Maple Leafs. He has been stingy with PTOs thus far as a new GM, but Treliving may reward Lorentz's work habits and Shutdown abilities with a one-year league minimum deal. Maple Leafs reporter Luke Fox sure believes so, and feels Lorentz has already earned himself the new deal, but that it just hasn't been announced publicly yet.
It wasn't about the money, though, at least, not entirely. He could have signed for other teams on better salaries, but the commitment to the boyhood team and belief in their potential to go deep into the playoffs says it all.
Lorentz will look not to take his opportunity for granted and commit to helping the Leafs reach their championship aspirations, whether or not he's a permanent fixture within the roster.
