How new forward Teddy Blueger intends to fit in with Maple Leafs

Flying under the radar so far at training camp, not yet playing at Scotiabank Arena, Blueger looks forward to the season opener on Bay Street

Published Sep 26, 2026  •  Last updated 25 minutes ago  •  2 minute read

Teddy Blueger at the Toronto Maple Leafs training camp at the Ford Performance Centre in Etobicoke on Thursday, Sept.17, 2026. Photo by rnest Doroszuk /Toronto Sun/Postmedia Network

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Teddy Blueger has worked in his No. 73 Maple Leaf sweater in Etobicoke, Montreal, Ottawa and this weekend in Phoenix, Arizona.

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On Tuesday, he finally gets to wear blue home togs at Scotiabank Arena, in a real game for his new team. The season opener against the Montreal Canadiens is where Blueger debuts on the revamped fourth line at centre, likely with Zac MacEwan and Brandon Duhaime.

“From what I hear, I’ll have to figure out the traffic patterns,” Blueger mused this week of navigating weeknight rush hour in Toronto. “But it’ll be nice to get the routine down, to know your way around the arena to feel comfortable.”

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How has Blueger’s training camp progressed?

Blueger was out of sight on the travelling split squad rosters against the Habs and Senators. The Latvian-born Blueger got feisty in a fight with Montreal farmhand Ethan Samson, then had a couple of hits, was out to defend a lead when Ottawa pulled its goalie and potted an empty netter.

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He has certainly enjoyed some NHL highs, a second-round pick of Pittsburgh who provided defensive counterbalance to the Sidney Crosby-Evegeni Malkin air show and won a Stanley Cup as a late 2023 addition to Las Vegas.

Teddy Blueger of the Vancouver Canucks celebrates a goal against the New York Islanders earlier this year. Getty Images

What was his path to Toronto?

After three years in Vancouver. the last two out of the playoffs and recovering from his leg muscle injury, it was time for the six-foot centre/winger to relocate. Leaf general manager John Chayka was looking to rebuild Toronto’s bottom six with proven pluggers who’d stay a couple of years, Blueger at $2.5 million US.

“You want to go somewhere you’re wanted and it seemed like a good fit,” Blueger said of coming to Toronto with his wife and year-old daughter. “It’s a good team where you want to have a role, whatever the situation dictates. In the course of a year, a lot of things can change; injuries and different things. You do what’s asked of you.”

The Minnesota State University grad, by way of Shattuck-St. Mary’s High School to get North American-ized, had a couple of 21-goal seasons in the AHL and has been good for 20-plus points in most of his NHL seasons.

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“I think you have your foundation, the kind of stuff you can fall back on,” he assessed. “At the same time, you’re trying to evolve. Each year there are plenty of new guys coming up, turning pro or from junior so the competition is really high.”

With the arrival of Chayka, advisor Mats Sundin, coach Jim Hiller, his new assistants, plus Gavin McKenna, Darren Raddysh, Sergei Bobrovsky and the homecoming of Nick Paul, Blueger has been spared media attention some players find hard in Toronto.

Having been in another major Canadian market, Blueger is not browbeaten.

“We’ll see if it’s all cracked up what it’s supposed to be,” he laughed. “Pittsburgh was pretty busy too, all the stuff around Sid and Geno.”

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