Maple Leafs' Michael Pezzetta eager for opening night debut against former team Canadiens

Michael Pezzetta signed a two-year, $1.575 million contract with the Toronto Maple Leafs. He will move from the Montreal Canadiens, where he played the first four seasons of his NHL career.

Pezzetta's career so far in the league has been characterized by his enforcer-style of play. Last season, he averaged just 5:56 minutes on ice but recorded 29.52 hits per 60 minutes. However, he is not a points producer, recording 0 points in that time and has just 15 points in 200 games. In 2023-24, he got a +4 rating playing 61 games for the Habs.

During the Friends and Family FanFest hosted by Alex Newhook, Michael Pezzetta made his feelings known about cutting the Leafs' Opening Day roster. He expressed his excitement.

"I better make the opening lineup," Pezzetta said [1:43:00 onwards]. "I just obviously really want to be a part of that game. It'll be a blast. Seeing everybody and being able to kind of start the season off that way. Just kind of marked off on the calendar, and I just really want to do everything I can to try to be in that game."

With recent additions, the Leafs' lineup is stacked. Newcomers Mattias Macelli, Nicolas Roy and Dakota Joshua are expected to start for the team, which makes Pezzetta's signing a depth pickup for the team in need of blue-collar players like him. If given a chance, Pezzetta might be deployed in the fourth line alongside Steven Lorentz and Scott Laughton.

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Michael Pezzetta opens up about the difference between Leafs and Habs fanbases

Michael Pezzetta grew up as a Leafs fan in the city of Toronto. While there will be a pressure of playing in his hometown, Pezzetta recognized the differences but the universality of the two cities as hockey powerhouses.

"Yes, I think they're both crazy markets where hockey is almost like a sort of religion there," Pezzetta said [1:49:00 onwards]. "It's something that when you're born, like I mean, I was from Toronto, I grew up like it was you were a Leafs fan, right? Same as kids growing up in Montreal, you're a Habs fan, right? It's just instilled in your parents, and it's passed on to you, and I think it's just something special."

Pezzetta might be given a nod in the preseason itself to represent his new team against the Canadiens. The two sides are supposed to face on the 25th and 27th of September.