Vermont Eliminated, So Brayden Irwin Signs In Toronto

It happens furiously this time of year. As teams are eliminated from their respective conference tournament's and now the NCAA tournament, seniors sign with NHL clubs in hopes of turning their hockey dreams into a career.

Brayden Irwin, power forward from the Vermont Catamounts, has signed with his home town team, the Toronto Maple Leafs. SB Nation's Leafs blog, Pension Plan Puppets, has the details.

Contrary to reports from the CBC the Toronto Maple Leafs did not sign Brady Irwin. Rather, the Toronto Maple Leafs signed Brayden Irwin from the University of Vermont Catamounts. The signing hasn't been made official by the Maple Leafs yet because Vermont was just eliminated from the NCAA tournament. The Globe and Mail reported just over a week ago that he was among Brian Burke's targets and it looks like he has once again gotten his man. He joins Tyler Bozak and Christian Hanson as free agents that Burke has signed from the NCAA.

Brayden Irwin is a six foot, five inch 215 pound monster local boy from Toronto. He took a quantum leap in production during his last year which is not a surprise considering he was a senior and turned 23 on the 24th of March.