Leafs sign Brooks to two-year contract, Robertson named OHL's most sportsmanlike player

Adam Brooks during one of his seven games with the Toronto Maple Leafs this season. Brooks was signed to a new contract on Thursday.

Put Adam Brooks in the mix for a Maple Leafs forward spot next season.

And while we realize Brooks was probably in that conversation anyway, the notion became a little more official on Thursday when the Leafs announced they have signed the 24-year-old Winnipeg native to a two-year, two-way contract with an annual average value of $725,000 US.

Brooks got his feet wet in the National Hockey League this past December and January, playing in seven games for the Leafs and recording three assists.

In 29 games with the Toronto Marlies, Brooks had 20 points (nine goals and 11 assists).

“He got his first taste of the NHL this year and it was really impressive to see him thrive within those opportunities,” Marlies coach Greg Moore said earlier this week. “When he came back you could also see a level of confidence that he gained from that experience.”

A fourth-round pick by the Leafs in 2016 (92nd overall), Brooks has compiled 79 points in 147 regular-season games with the Marlies. He has 14 points in 33 career playoff games, including six in 20 when the Marlies won the Calder Cup in 2018.

The Brooks signing leaves the Leafs with eight restricted free agents — forwards Ilya Mikheyev, Denis Malgin, Frederik Gauthier, Jeremy Bracco, Pontus Aberg, Max Veronneau and defencemen Travis Dermott and Teemu Kivihalme.

Also on Thursday, Leafs prospect Nick Robertson was named the winner of the William Hanley Trophy as the Ontario Hockey League’s most sportsmanlike player.

In 46 games for the Peterborough Petes, the 18-year-old forward had a Canadian Hockey League-high 55 goals and also recorded 31 assists for 86 points. Robertson had 40 penalty minutes and was plus-29.

The 53rd pick overall by the Leafs last year at the NHL draft in Vancouver, Robertson is going to get every opportunity to earn a job with the Leafs at training camp for the 2020-21 season, but it’s possible he is added to an expanded Leafs roster if the NHL manages to find a way to complete the 2019-20 season.

“I really appreciate being recognized,” Robertson said in a statement released by the OHL. “I’d like to thank my general manager Mike Oke, head coach Rob Wilson, the Petes staff, and my teammates.

“I’d also like to thank Petes fans — you all made the PMC an electrifying building, got us excited and motivated to win and, win or loss, you were always there to support us.”

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