Cody Franson has developed into one of the more important defensemen for the Toronto Maple Leafs. The former third-round pick of the Nashville Predators in the 2005 NHL draft is on the cusp of a very large payday given his improving play and current contract situation.
The 6'5" native of Salmon Arm, British Columbia is playing with a one-year contract worth $2 million and is due to be a restricted free agent at the end of the 2013-14 season.
The Maple Leafs have a number of questions surrounding their defense with current No. 1 defenseman and captain Dion Phaneuf also due to become an unrestricted free agent at the end of this year.
Young Morgan Rielly has impressed most observers, and the smooth-skating defender has all the tools to be a dominant player in the coming seasons.
While Jake Gardiner seemed to be poised to become a key component of the defense core, he has not received the ice time that lends one to believe that Randy Carlyle sees him as a top-two defender, at least for the time being. He's averaged under 20 minutes per game and has had the fifth-most minutes of Leaf defensemen this season.
Read Full Article at Bleacher Report - NHL
Article written by James Onusko
Does Cody Franson Have Potential to Be a No. 1 D-Man for Toronto Maple Leafs?
October 22nd, 2013 by James Onusko Leave a reply »
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