Leafs busy on Day 1

On a day when NHL teams spent millions of dollars on free agents to offer fans hope, the Maple Leafs gave their faithful Cujo, Larry and The Finger.

That would be Curtis Joseph, the former Leaf goalie returning to the fold as a backup, winger Niklas (Larry) Hagman, who scored a career-high 27 goals with the Dallas Stars; and Jeff Finger, a late-blooming, stay-at-home defenceman from the Colorado Avalanche.

Joseph, a household name in Toronto for his heroics with the team under Pat Quinn, got a one-year $700,000 (all figures U.S.) deal. Hagman, whose name might register with most hockey fans, got a four-year, $12 million deal.

But many heads were scratched when the Leafs offered the little-known Finger - who's played one full season in the NHL - a four-year, $14 million deal.

"Who's Jeff Finger?" became the question of the day.

"I was thinking the same thing," the good-natured Finger said in a telephone interview. "Me and my agent were joking when we sent the contract to the (players' association), they were like: 'Who's this guy?' I kind of laughed.

"I'm sure a lot of people are wondering who I am and what I'm about. I'm excited to come in there and prove myself and help the team out."

But new Leafs coach Ron Wilson knows exactly who Finger is.

"He was the most improved defenceman in the Western Conference last year," said Wilson, whose San Jose Sharks played the Avs four times. "When we had Joe Thornton on the ice, Finger was the guy who had to play heads-up with Joe and he did a really good job.

"He's not going to be a points producer, but he'll kill penalties, play tough and mean in front of the net and (be) a perfect complement to go with an offensive-minded defenceman."

Finger, 28, turned pro at 23 after leaving St. Cloud State University, where he was a teammate of former Penguins star Ryan Malone. An eighth-round draft pick in 1999, he started out in the ECHL and played 3 1/2 years in the AHL before breaking into the Avalanche lineup.

When the 2007-08 season began, Finger averaged under 15 minutes a game. By the end of the year, he was up to 23.

"He's a tough kid, he's a physical player, he's not afraid to hit you," said Craig Dahl, Finger's coach from St. Cloud. "He's in great shape. He's not afraid at all to mix it up. He plays a real defensive game.

"He's one of those guys where everybody on the other team knows when he's on the ice."

"It's pretty surreal," said Finger. "Just waking up (yesterday), I didn't really know what to expect. I knew it as going to be an exciting day. To turn out like this, it's more than I could have imagined.

"To be a part of the Leafs, I'm absolutely honoured. I grew up watching Hockey Night in Canada on the bunny ears. I lived on Lake Superior across from Thunder Bay. We watched that every Saturday and got to see a lot of Leaf games.

"They told me they want to turn things around and they want me to be a part of it," added Finger. "It's going to be exciting. I know in a market like Toronto, it's unacceptable to lose.

"I'm very confident in the fact that things will be turned around and they're going to take steps in the right direction."

If there was a theme to the signings of Joseph, Hagman and Finger, it was their character.

"The guys we signed played in the playoffs last year, played on winning teams and want to be a part of something here in Toronto," said Wilson.

"Curtis is coming in to be a backup to Vesa (Toskala). He wants to finish his career right now. He's a quality person who can play 10, 15 games, who is going to be able to support Toskala and knows his role."

Wilson sees Hagman playing with Jamal Mayers, a draft-day trade acquisition.

"We're trying to put together an energy line, a grind line. That's why we got Jamal Mayers at the draft. Hagman can fit in there.

"He scored 27 goals last year and didn't play a lot on the power play. He doesn't shy away from traffic."

More work is to be done, with GM Cliff Fletcher looking for another forward and defenceman.

But he considered it a pretty good day to get the three players he did, signed within the first seven hours of free agency.

"It looks like we got bargain basement deals compared to some of the deals out there," said Fletcher.