We knew it was coming and now it’s here. At the price we were promised for the term we were promised.

Muzzin has been the Leafs best defenseman south of the center line for the past year, and that’s probably not something they could easily walk away from, even it comes with significant dollars and term for a 31 year old defenseman.

As we can see, there is a ton of signing bonuses, which will probably help the Leafs trade him after that last bonus is paid, but also likely makes the contract pretty buyout proof. As bizarre as it seems to be looking at how to get out of a contract on a good player, that’s pretty much the nature of how any contract on a 30+ year old needs to be.

So that’s a bit of flexibility as well.

The Muzzin contract is probably better than anything the Leafs could do in order to replace him, especially through free agency, so overall the deal gets a pass, but with the concerns that come with a slower 30+ year old, with some recent injuries.

Our good friends at PuckPedia have the full breakdown of Muzzin’s contract, and while it is largely buyout proof with signing bonuses in every year, the drop off in salary in the last two years gives the Leafs some flexibility in trading it, if they are just so deep with top four defensemen at that point.