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The Toronto Maple Leafs organization has drafted and developed a number of youngsters currently playing in the NHL (Auston Matthews, Mitch Marner, William Nylander), but the focus of prospect development under former GM Kyle Dubas and the last few seasons under Director of Amateur Scouting Wes Clark seemed to be on skill players, while GM Brad Treliving has begun to transition with a focus on young players with size.
As we did last year, we will rank the club’s top prospects over the upcoming weeks based on their progress in either the NCAA, CHL, Europe, ECHL or AHL and their potential to make the Leafs roster and make a contribution in the future.
Youngsters like Bobby McMann, Joseph Woll, Nick Robertson, Pontus Holmberg, and top rated Matthew Knies have graduated, but here is a list of players eligible for the list who have not played more than 40 NHL games and are 25 years old or younger:
In his quest to put his stamp on the Toronto Maple Leafs prospect pool, Treliving’s free agent signings and developmental prospects have generally been players with a larger stature. One such signing is 21-year-old Marko Sikic.
Sikic was a late-bloomer who struggled through two OHL seasons with Guelph before being traded to Sarnia in January 2022. In 2 ½ seasons with the Sting, the 6’3”, 183 lb. forward’s offensive numbers increased each season, culminating with a 57-point campaign as an overager last season.
I'm not sure I've ever heard the 'PASA' louder than when Marko Sikic tied the game yesterday with 2 minutes remaining.
The place went nuts. So happy it was Sikic, too, who's had a terrific series so far in all aspects of the game. #Stingpic.twitter.com/gWxWAhd4Xd
The big forward joined the Newfoundland Growlers after Sarnia’s season finished and scored three points (1G, 2A) in three games. Last month, the Leafs signed Sikic to an AHL deal and it is likely that he will start his first full professional season with Toronto’s new ECHL affiliate in Cincinnati, but with his size, if he is able to produce at a regular rate as he did in the OHL and his brief pro stint last year, moving up to the AHL is very possible.
Toronto Maple Leafs Blogger • 
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