Leafs try to overpay for Frogren
In the wake of the Jeff Finger signing, someone had to step in and say enough was enough.
That’s why the NHL rejected the Maple Leafs’ signing of 28-year-old Swedish defenseman Jonas Frogren yesterday.
The problem, not surprisingly, is that they wanted to give him too much money.
The league determined Frogren, 28, must be signed to an entry-level contract as a first-year NHL player despite his pro experience in Europe. The Leafs had signed Frogren to a standard contract.
It’s not hard to understand why teams feel like they need to spend lots of money to compete with the 2008-09 Stanley Cup champion Detroit Red Wings, but this is a pushing-30 defenseman who has never seen ice time in North America. That explains why Fletcher wants him in Toronto’s top six next year.
Sucks for Anton Stralman.
The Frogren contains MLSE. That's bad.
