Toronto Maple Leafs defenceman Troy Stecher met with reporters Tuesday afternoon, after signing a two-year extension. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed by the Maple Leafs, but Stecher reportedly signed a pact worth $1.35 million per season, via PuckPedia.

Stecher is looking forward to getting started again under new head coach Jim Hiller, where there are shared ties.

“I’m obviously really excited,” Stecher said. “Just growing up in Vancouver, we have a lot of mutual connections. I’m sure there’s going to be different tendencies and systems.”

“I think if you go through the history of the league, whenever there’s a coaching change, you usually get a really big spark out of your group. In saying that, that doesn’t mean anything bad about the past regime. It’s the way the business goes.”

Stecher quickly emerged as a fan favourite after being claimed off waivers in November. The veteran defenceman spoke about playing with a chip on his shoulder, and his mobility and competitiveness were on immediate display. Stecher played the best hockey of his career from November-January, and was one of the team’s best defenders, amid a lost season. The 32-year-old was self-critical, and acknowledged a decline in his play at the end of the 2025-26 campaign.

Toronto has undergone several changes this summer. Hiller has replaced Craig Berube as head coach, while general manager John Chayka and senior executive advisor to hockey operations Mats Sundin are in charge of the new leadership regime. Toronto also selected Gavin McKenna with the first overall pick in the 2026 NHL Draft, a transformational offensive talent, who will headline this week’s Development Camp. Stecher offered his take on playing with McKenna.

“I know it’s to be seen, but everybody in the hockey world loves (Connor) Bedard and (Macklin) Celebrini and (Matthew) Schaefer have brought the past three years as first-overall picks, so you would probably expect the same. He’s gonna be a heck of a player.”

Toronto will now head into free agency with over $20 million in cap space, where it could continue to revamp its defensive corps after a summer of change, although the Maple Leafs are widely expected to be targeting Patrick Kane on July 1.

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