The Maple Leafs had better have a pretty good penalty killing unit next season.

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Garnet Exelby #2 of the Atlanta Thrashers fights against Mike Richards #18 of the Philadelphia Flyers on December 28, 2005 at Philips Arena in Atlanta, Georgia. The Flyers won the game 5-4.

Photograph by : Getty Images

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They're going to need one with the tough, take-no-prisoners kind of players GM Brian Burke picked up yesterday in defencemen Mike Komisarek and Garnet Exelby and enforcer-winger Colton Orr.

Combined, they've played 963 games, accumulated only 22 goals but have 1,556 penalty minutes.

Indeed, on a day when offensive stars like twins Daniel and Henrik Sedin, Marian Hossa and Mike Cammalleri were making big-money deals, the Leafs opted to go after players who exude pugnacity - exactly the type Burke talked about when he started his reign with the club.

"It was apparent from the time Brian Burke took the job, he wanted the Leafs to be tougher," said assistant GM Dave Nonis. "We wanted players who would not just fight, but play hard. We think we accomplished that."

The Leafs also got younger, with the players acquired yesterday in their mid-20s, while they parted ways with 32-year-old defenceman Pavel Kubina.

"They'll be with this team for the long haul," said Nonis of the newcomers. "We know we need time to make our team into a contender. We wanted guys who could be here when we become contenders."

There is more to come. The Leafs are listening to proposals for defenceman Tomas Kaberle, hoping to flip him for a scoring forward they failed to land yesterday.

Burke was in Sweden, foiled in his attempts to talk to the Sedins, who re-signed with Vancouver moments before they could have opted for unrestricted free agency. It won't be a wasted trip, since he'll get to make another pitch to free agent goalie Jonas Gustavsson.

Komisarek, 27, is the prize blue line acquisition.

An alternate captain with the Habs, Komisarek signed a five-year deal at $4.5 million (all figures U.S.) a season, adding size and toughness to complement Luke Schenn.

Komisarek was 25th in the league in hits, with 191 in just 66 games.

"He's a guy that's just coming into the prime of his career," said Nonis.

"He's a high-end player and plays a hard-nosed style of game, he brings leadership qualities to this team."

The Leafs came close to trading for Exelby - another player who can deliver big hits - during the season and finally landed him yesterday, along with prospect centre Colin Stuart from the Atlanta Thrashers, in exchange for Kubina and minor league forward Tim Stapleton.

"People are going to enjoy how (Exelby) plays," said Nonis. "He's a terrific shot blocker, one of the leaders on hits on his team and his hits are quite violent.

"He's a guy who can put up a hit, which can be a major momentum-changer for his team."

Exelby, 27, earns $1.725 million, much less than Kubina's $5 million annual stipend. Stuart earns $500,000. Both will be unrestricted free agents next summer and give the Leafs a little extra cap room.

"It made it easier to sign Komisarek to a long-term deal," said Nonis. "Kubina played well here, he put a lot of pucks in the net. But we thought bringing a younger defenceman back in that deal, who plays the style we want to play, was important, and we have a lot cap space left to improve our team."

Stuart, 26, scored three short-handed goals as a bit-performer for the Thrashers last season. His brother plays for the Bruins, and his father is a doctor for Burke's Team USA entry into the 2010 Olympics.

Orr, 27, signed a four-year deal worth $4 million and gives the Leafs the kind of drop-your-gloves enforcer the team has lacked.

Offensively, the best you can say is Orr is on a three-year scoring streak. He scored twice in the 2006-07 season, once in the 2007-08 season and once last season. He averaged a little more than six minutes a game last season.

The Leafs continue to lack scoring. They had hoped to go after the Sedins and were frustrated when Montreal scooped up Cammalleri. But Nonis said he's not worried.

"You find out if certain players who haven't been given an opportunity can score," said Nonis. "You would have said last year's team would have had a difficult time scoring as well, but when certain players got the opportunity, they were able to put the puck in the net.

"If we have to start the season with the players we have right now, I'm sure we'll be competitive enough and some of these guys will surprise all of us."