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When the Florida Panthers won the Stanley Cup, one of the last videos that evening was a giddy Steven Lorentz walking around the empty arena ice in just shorts and flip flops, taking a selfie of him hurling a drink to celebrate.
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His first step back this season could be with the Maple Leafs. Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reported on Roger Lajoie’s FAN 590 show radio Tuesday that Lorentz is likely to join the Leafs on a Professional Tryout Contract when camp opens in two weeks. Other outlets reported a deal is already done, though agent Robert Hooper did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The 6-foot-4, 216-pound centre/left winger could be a good low-risk insurance policy at both positions. Tyler Bertuzzi was not brought back on the left side and the team is trying to figure out what to do with disgruntled Nick Robertson. At centre, beyond Auston Matthews and John Tavares, the Leafs don’t have a defined third-liner yet as Max Domi can move around and Fraser Minten is still a rookie.
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Back in the 2015 draft, Toronto used its final seventh-round pick on Russian winger Nikita Korestelev, with Carolina choosing Kitchener-born Lorentz right after. Lorentz signed an entry-level deal with the Canes and was on their bubble roster for the COVID delayed 2020 playoffs before finally making his NHL debut in 2021. He was traded to San Jose in 2022 as part of the Brent Burns package and the Sharks sent him back east last summer to acquire Anthony Duclair from the Panthers.
After playing a career high 80 games for the rebuilding Sharks, it required plenty of adjustment and patience on Lorentz’s part when the Cup-focused Cats dressed him just 36 times in regular season. But he played 16 playoff games with a goal and two assists, including the first four games of the final against Edmonton.
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Last year, fourth liner Noah Gregor turned his PTO with the Leafs into a one-year deal.
With the calendar turning to September, new Toronto coach Craig Berube will have many decisions on how best to utilize incumbent Leafs. As expected, Mitch Marner was not traded despite a sub-par playoff as he begins the final year of his current contract with an extension to come at some point. Robertson, a restricted free agent, has little leverage to force a deal, while Minten and fellow first round pick winger Easton Cowan are counting on an eye-catching rookie camp next week to set the table for the main event.
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