The Toronto Maple Leafs have made it a point to carve out the type of identity they’re looking for from their team in 2025-26 and beyond, and new acquisition Dakota Joshua is going to be a key part of that.

It’s funny calling him a ‘new’ acquisition because he actually started his pro career with the Maple Leafs organization. The team selected him in the fifth round of the 2014 NHL Draft, but after playing out his college career, the team traded his rights to the St. Louis Blues for future considerations. He broke into the league with the Blues and played for Craig Berube, who will be his bench boss in Toronto, and after signing with the Vancouver Canucks, he had a breakout season in 2023-24 with 18 goals and 32 points in 63 games. Following that season, he was diagnosed with testicular cancer and underwent surgery that caused him to miss the start of the 2024-25 season. He never found his footing after that, and despite just finishing the first of a four-year contract extension, he was traded to Toronto in early July.

He finished second on the Canucks in hits last season, despite the missed time, and in a recent interview with Dave Feschuk of the Toronto Star, he said he’s looking forward to bringing his style of play to the Maple Leafs’ lineup. He drew from his experience playing for Berube in St. Louis and former Canucks head coach Rick Tocchet, saying the two are very similar in terms of what they expect of their players.

“(Both Berube and Tocchet) like a hard-working, north-south game, which is my type of game,” Joshua said. “(Tocchet) was also a tremendous help in letting my career take off after getting started with Chief. Chief, he’s very professional and he’s a straight shooter. He lets you know where you stand and wants you to go out there and get the job done. He expects a lot out of his players, which I like. He was a tremendous help in getting my career started and evolving into the player I am today.”

Needless to say, Joshua is going to be coming into the 2025-26 season with a chip on his shoulder, and he’s looking forward to getting a proper shot to play for the team that drafted him.

“I’m looking forward to coming out and spending the summer in Toronto, just getting familiar with everybody and getting acclimated before the season,” he said. “I’m just looking to hit the ground running when camp starts.”

Love baseball? Don’t miss The 6ix Inning Stretch — the brand new podcast from The Nation Network, presented by Betway. Hosted by Toronto sports reporter Lindsay Dunn and 3-time MLB All-Star Whit Merrifield, this weekly show delivers insider stories, unfiltered Jays talk, player interviews, and expert analysis from around the majors. New episodes drop every Wednesday — listen on your favourite podcast platform or watch on the Bluejaysnation YouTube channel.