Connor Dewar avoids arbitration in one-year deal with Leafs

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Connor Dewar, one of last season’s useful additions at the trade deadline, will be staying a Maple Leaf for 2024-25.

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With a looming salary arbitration hearing, the restricted free agent 25-year-old forward signed a one-year deal for $1.18 million on Tuesday.

Dewar came to the Leafs in early March from the Minnesota Wild for forward Dmitry Ovchinnikov and a 2026 fourth-round draft pick. With Toronto, the 5-foot-10 Dewar, smallest player on the team, used his 183-pounds to hit hard on the forecheck and contribute a goal and four assists in 17 games. He played in all but one of Toronto’s seven playoff games versus Boston, adding an assist, mostly at fourth-line right wing with centre David Kampf and right winger Ryan Reaves.

The native of The Pas, Man., should get along fine with new coach Craig Berube as a centre or winger and should be familiar to Berube through a few years in the Wild system after being a third-round selection of Minnesota in the 2018 draft. In addition to his defensive acumen, last year’s 11 total goals in 74 games were a career high.

His 103 points in 190 games are the most by any player in the third round of his draft year to date. With Dewar’s signing, eight of the 14 NHL arbitration cases due to be heard before Aug. 4 have been settled.

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