Auston Matthews returned to practice and nearly took part in a full session. The question is how much longer? The Toronto Maple Leafs announced on X [https://x.com/LeafsPR/status/1875261942547481046] that they have reclaimed defenseman Dakota Mermis off waivers from the Utah Hockey Club [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/utah/] on Friday. The Maple Leafs confirmed that the 30-year-old has been assigned to the AHL’s Toronto Marlies, indicating they were the only team to submit a claim. Mermis had been placed on waivers by Utah for the purpose of being assigned to AHL affiliate, the Tucson Roadrunners, but now returns to where he began the 2024-25 season – in Toronto. Mermis appeared in a lone appearance for the Hockey Club at the NHL level on December 22 against Anaheim where he registered zero points and a minus-2 rating. Mermis was previously placed on waivers by the Leafs in December and claimed by Utah in the process. The Leafs waived the player as he was officially activated from long-term injured reserve after sustaining a broken jaw during training camp. The Alton, Illinois native signed an NHL minimum deal of $775,000 with the Maple Leafs on July 3 with intentions of becoming a strong voice and leader in the Marlies locker room. Before being claimed by Utah, the undrafted defenseman had one assist in three appearances with the Marlies on a conditioning loan with the team. Mermis now has the opportunity to once again serve as an experienced depth defenseman for the Maple Leafs and, more specifically, the Marlies. At just six feet tall and 194 pounds, he is quick on his feet and extremely mobile. The blueliner could be a useful piece if the Leafs run into depth issues on the backend, but he’ll have to work his way back to the NHL level if he has any hopes of doing so. In the 2023-24 season, Mermis played in a career-high 47 NHL games with the Minnesota Wild [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/minnesota-wild/], recording three goals and five assists for an eight-point total. He’s played in 75 career NHL games split across eight seasons, registering four goals, eight assists, and 12 points. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Image [https://thehockeynews.com/.image/c_fit,h_600,w_600/MjExNjM5NDEwNTc4NDM0MDI0/googlenews.svg] Stay updated with the most interesting Maple Leafs stories, analysis, breaking news and more! Tap the star to add us to your favorites on Google News [https://news.google.com/publications/CAAqBwgKMK-q0gsw7sXpAw/sections/CAQqEAgAKgcICjCvqtILMO7F6QMwytvfCA?ceid=CA:en&oc=3] to never miss a story.
