Maple Leafs Sign First Rounder Ben Danford

The Toronto Maple Leafs did some things to solidify their blueline for 2024-25 with the signings of veterans Chris Tanev and Oliver Ekman-Larsson, now they've locked-in a young piece for the future of their defensive corps, signing 2024 first-round pick Ben Danford to a three-year entry-level deal.

Pen to paper ✍️

We’ve signed defenceman Ben Danford to a three-year, entry-level contract
— Toronto Maple Leafs (@MapleLeafs) August 2, 2024

The 18-year-old was the 31st overall pick in the NHL Entry Draft in June, following an excellent year with the Oshawa Generals of the OHL, in which he posted 33 points in 64 games along with a terrific plus/minus of +27. He added another 10 points in 21 playoff games.

Born in nearby Belleville, Ont., Danford has been a Leafs fan all his life, so this is a dream come true for the lockdown defender.

The 6'2", 190-pound right-shot d-man says he wants to model his game after former Leafs blueliner Jake Muzzin, as noted by David Alter in The Hockey News. Danford got a great start at doing just that, as Muzzin was one of the instructors at the Leafs Development Camp last month, so he got to work directly with the solid 12-year NHLer.

It's expected that Danford will be at Leafs camp in October, before heading back to Oshawa for another year of development in juniors.