A former member of the Toronto Maple Leafs has decided to journey away from the NHL and return to where his career began, back in Switzerland. On Tuesday morning, the Zurich Lions of the Swiss-A League announced that Denis Malgin had signed a deal for the next 5 seasons.
Malgin played 65 games last season, split between the Leafs and Colorado Avalanche, posting 13 goals and 8 assists for a total of 21 points over that span. After 23 games with the Leafs, ex-GM Kyle Dubas dealt Malgin to the Avs in exchange for winger Dryden Hunt, who never quite panned out in Toronto.
Malgin was a Leaf for parts of two seasons after being acquired in the trade that sent Leafs prospect Mason Marchment to the Florida Panthers in exchange for Malgin. The move wasn't received well at the time, with Marchment being a much larger, more physical player at 6'4, 210 lbs. Meanwhile, Malgin measured just 5'9 and 180 lbs.
The Lions are very familiar with Malgin, who spent a number of seasons in the organization from 2013-2016 before making the jump over to North America. Malgin made another short stop in Zurich in 2021-22, posting 52 points in 48 games before retuning to the Leafs last season after a successful campaign with the Lions. Malgin was also a teammate of Auston Matthews' back in 2015-16, prior to the 2016 1st overall pick being drafted by the Leafs.
