Report: Leafs Sign Cracknell and Subban, Re-sign Marincin

Okay, we can all calm down for a couple minutes to see some depth signings that the Leafs made today. This might be loss in the Tavares hype, but the Leafs made some pretty smart signings this afternoon.

Josh Jooris was already mentioned earlier, but he is a very solid depth forward signing. Bouncing around between several organizations, Jooris will most likely be solid Marlies depth for the upcoming AHL season.

At 32-years-old, Adam Cracknell can be a fairly good depth signing for the Leafs or Marlies. He can come up in dire injury need, but he will most likely stay with the Marlies. Last season, he was with the Laval Rocket for a majority of the season. There he was able to score 27 goals and 48 points in 54 games. His most recent NHL experience, was with the Dallas Stars and New York Rangers last season, earning around eight minutes of ice-time a night.

Returning to the organization is Martin Marincin. Marincin was first acquired from the Edmonton Oilers for a fourth-round pick and Brad Ross, and instantly made the Leafs in the 2015-16 season. He was able to play 65 games for the Leafs that season, scoring one goal and seven points in 65 games. Since then, he has primarily been with the Calder Cup Champion Toronto Marlies, scoring four goals and 20 points in 52 games for them.

Marincin has shone in his role with the Marlies this season. He might not look the most graceful, but he can control the play and has pretty good zone entry denial.

Lastly, the Leafs have signed Jordan Subban to add to the depth of the organization. This doesn’t scream excitement, but Jordan has performed well in his roles within both the Vancouver Canucks and Los Angeles Kings organizations. Drafted by the Canucks in the fourth round in 2013, Subban has yet to make his NHL debut.

The 5’9″ right-handed defenceman has played 184 total games in the AHL for both of his previous organizations, scoring 31 goals and 85 points within that time. I imagine that Subban will start the 2018-19 season with the Marlies, but it would be an excellent story to have him make his NHL debut with the Leafs. Each Subban brother would have made the NHL with an Original Six organization, if that matters to you.

All four of these signings show some awareness of the organizational depth. Marincin and Subban can stay with the Marlies and be called-upon an injury. As of now the Leafs blueline might appear fairly shallow, but that might eventually change in the coming years.

Jooris and Cracknell, like Subban and Marincin, will most likely start with the Marlies and their NHL experience can be a solid addition to that young team. Especially with their captain Ben Smith leaving to play in the DEL in Germany.

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