Oakville, ON – Toronto Rock Owner, President, and GM Jamie Dawick announced today that he has again placed the franchise tag on Mark Matthews and has signed the future hall-of-fame forward to a two-year deal. Matthews was instrumental in bringing home the Rock’s seventh NLL title when Toronto defeated Halifax to capture the 2026 NLL Cup in May.
This is Matthews’ second contract as a member of the Rock with the franchise tag designation. Prior to that first franchise tag contract that was signed in 2024, the Rock last handed out the franchise tag in 2013 when the club signed all-time Rock legend Colin Doyle.
Matthews was due to become an Unrestricted Free Agent (UFA) on August 1. The franchise tag allows the player to earn a salary that is above the veteran maximum salary as laid out in the CBA.
After missing most of the 2024-25 season due to injury, the Mailman shared the team lead in points with CJ Kirst totaling 71 points during the 2025-26 campaign. He did so much more than just contribute on the scoreboard. Matthews brings just as much to the locker room and helped instill the self-confidence in the group to get them over the hump and finally win another championship.
The 36-year-old from Oshawa, ON came to the Rock from Saskatchewan in a massive offseason trade in the summer of 2023, that sent Zach Manns, Adam Jay, and the Rock’s first round pick (12th overall) in the 2023 NLL Draft.
NLL Free Agency is scheduled to begin August 1, 2026.
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