Leafs Sign College Free Agent Casey Bailey

The Leafs already made a bit of noise last night signing Russian free agent Nikita Soshnikov.  They made some more tonight, signing 6″3′ Penn State winger Casey Bailey to a two-year entry-level contract.

This is good news, Bailey is among the most, if not the most, coveted college free agents this season. He put up 40 points in 37 games for Penn State this season, has great size, a heavy shot, and a strong defensive game.  He’s 23 so he’s not too young, but he’s certainly not old either.  Bailey along with Soshnikov only stand to reaffirm the direction that the Leafs are headed in.  More than anything, it’s always good to add players that don’t cost you a draft pick or another asset in your organization.

Unlike Soshnikov, Bailey is expected to play in games for the Leafs this season Getting games in now will burn the first year of his two-year deal, which gives him more financial flexibility sooner. This was apparently a sticking point for Bailey and his camp.

We wrote about Bailey a couple of weeks ago and thought he was a good fit then and we certainly think he’s a good fit now.  You can read up more on Bailey and other college free agents the Leafs might be interested in here.

UPDATE: We’ve added a few tweets to give you some additional insight into the newest Leafs forward: