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Top-10 Prospects: Toronto Maple Leafs (1-5) |
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This is basically my second attempt at this one, as like the idiot I am I didn't save this blog so obviously it got deleted the second I turned my back on it for two seconds. So if the quality isn't as high, I plead the fifth.
While Toronto's drafting has been pretty hit/miss, it seems to have been slowly improving since the beginning of the Burke era...2011 first round aside. For the team with more money than anybody to throw at problems, one would expect their scouting staff to be halfway competent. I have liked their direction when picking early as they went with high reward style players (Kadri, Rielly and Nylander). It's actually funny, when they stay away from the knuckle draggers they do alright, who would have believed it?
As always players with 40+ games of experience aren't on this list so the likes of Rielly, Holland and so on aren't on here.
1. William Nylander : Centre/Right Wing, 5'11 170lbs, 8th Overall, 2014, 18 Years Old, MODO in the Elitserien
22 games 1 goal 6 assists 7 points
Posting just those stats doesn't really do Nylander justice as one, that isn't bad for a 17 year old in the Elitserien and two, he played for five different teams this year in four different leagues so I'd have to post them all to get the full story. Nylander (prompted by his father I would imagine) played as many games as he possibly could to help get used to the North American schedule that sometimes tires Europeans out who are used to a 50 game schedule. He played exactly 82 games this past season if you include international competition (which you should). Nylander had a slow start to the year and that really hurt what was basically a top-5 ranking and had him dip, it wasn't really until on loan to the Allsvenskan that he got the ice-time needed to show the elite offensive skills he has. He scored 11 goals in 17 games in Sodertalje which is basically unheard of. Keep in mind the highest drafted forward out of the Allsvenskan system in recent times (maybe ever?) was Filip Forsberg at 11 in 2012 who had only 8 goals in 43 games. That doesn't even include the four he managed in Rögle. Nylander was also named the Best Forward at the U18's (though one could argue any of Vrana, Fiala or Eichel deserved it more) with a blistering 16 points in just 7 games, the sixth highest in history. What Nylander brings is elite offensive instincts and abilities. Speed, shot, hands and intelligence, he has it all. What he doesn't have and will need to learn is defensive awareness and more importantly...eat a bloody sandwich or something! I still wonder if he is destined for the wing in the NHL where he won't have to do so much heavy lifting defensively and can focus on his game (Like Kessel and Kane for examples), he played wing extremely well during the U18's. Next season he has four options. 1. He makes the Leafs out of camp. 2. He re-signs in Sweden where he is technically a free agent. 3. He joins the Marlies (Best option). 4. He plays one or two years in the OHL with the Steelheads who own his rights (need a confirmation that he wouldn't have to play two seasons since he wasn't drafted out of the CHL).
Potential : Top Line Scorer
2. Matt Finn : Defenseman, 6'1 205lbs, 35th Overall, 2012, 20 Years Old, Guelph Storm in the OHL
66 games 14 goals 47 assists 61 points
Finn is a bit underrated around these parts, primarily because he sort of embodies the ideal for "two-way" defenseman. There are/were a ton of "sexier" choices and guys who could break games, sometimes beneficially other times detrimentally. Finn despite consistently putting up solid to excellent numbers, simply doesn't have that "wow" factor, he's just ruthlessly efficient. This past season was an excellent send off for Finn, nearly a PPG, a career high in goals, Captaining the Storm to become OHL champions and finding himself as one of the top defenders in the Memorial Cup being named to the All-Star Team. He was rewarded for his season with the OHL Commitment Award, probably because he was a serious candidate for Defenseman of the Year, but wanted to give it to a more "dynamic" choice. Finn is excellent defensively, understanding reads and positioning. He plays in all situations, though at the NHL level there will be question marks on whether he plays on the PP. For Guelph he got all the hard minutes, but also ample power play time, in the NHL there will be more offensively creative guys to compete against for those limited extra man minutes. I think he has the ability to be a "Hjalmarsson/Martin/Greene/Hamhuis" kind of guy if everything goes well. Next season Finn will play for the Marlies, considering the slow approach to minutes the coaches like to do with rookies, he probably will see bottom-pairing minutes (unless he impresses the heck out of them, which is a possibility).
Potential : Top-Four Two-Way Defenseman
3. Andreas Johnson : Left Wing, 5'10 176lbs, 202nd Overall, 2013, 19 Years Old, Frölunda in the Elitserien
44 games 15 goals 9 assists 24 points
If you are unfamiliar with Johnson, you can hardly be blamed. Not many people really cared/knew about him until this past season. If you want to see him play the European Tournament is on, an inter-league event that brings teams from all the leagues of Europe to compete. He currently leads said tournament with 11 points in 3 games, though to be fair he massacred a team from the French League and another from the DEL (Germany). Regardless, he has been extremely impressive so far, especially for a guy who was basically an afterthought in the draft. Johnson was the Rookie of the Year in the Elitserien beating out teammate Alexander Wennberg (Jackets), rising star Kevin Fiala (Preds) and the injured Gustav Possler (Sabres) in what was a really strong batch for the Elitserien. Johnson also had a strong showing for the Silver winning Swedes at the U20's. Johnson's game is built around his game breaking speed. He is insanely fast and more importantly gets to full speed very quickly. Very much reminiscent of the Grabner's or Hagelin's of the world, except I think it's safe to say Johnson has better hands than either. He has shown some offensive creativity, but the meat and bones of his game are speed and understanding how to find empty spaces of ice and exploit that. Obviously size will always be a question with him, as well as continuing to progress in his own zone. One thing is for certain though, he has top level NHL speed already and that's a great base to have. This season he will again play for Frölunda.
Potential : Top-Six Sniper
4. Stuart Percy : Defenseman, 6'0 190lbs, 25th Overall, 2011, 21 Years Old, Toronto Marlies in the AHL
71 games 4 goals 21 assists 25 points
I was a bit torn when deciding who to put at number four, there are several candidates that are pretty close, so I went with the bland choice and a guy who almost certainly has an NHL future ahead of him...even if it isn't glorious. Percy had a solid rookie season in the AHL, though he clearly wasn't at his best during the playoffs. He's often described as a "two-way" defenseman, but I don't really think he has the offensive instincts to be that in the NHL. He doesn't really have much of a shot and while a decent passer, doesn't have that PP QB level of skill needed to be a point producer at the NHL level. Regardless, Percy is a very strong positional defenseman and a guy known for being quietly effective in his own zone. He's not overly big or strong, yet gets the job done and is good at stripping opponents of the puck. With TJ "Oops" Brennan gone, the Marlies lack that PP QB, so with the Marlies being hard up on offensive defenders, I wonder if it will be Percy or Finn who runs it, could be interesting. Next season Percy will again start in the AHL and will be relied on for heavier minutes, especially if a guy like Granberg can force his way onto the Leafs.
Potential : 4-6 Defensive Defenseman
5. Connor Brown : Right Wing, 5'10 172lbs, 156th Overall, 2012, 20 Years Old, Eerie Otters in the OHL
68 games 45 goals 83 assists 128 points
Brown had a dream season that ended earlier than he and the Otters would have liked/expected. Apparently you have to play defense at times to win a game, weird concept. Brown was the OHL and CHL top scorer and named the OHL's Most Outstanding Player. Now the obvious scare is that his turnaround in play coincided with the arrival of the new Hockey Messiah Connor McDavid. Bringing comparisons to Brett MacLean who had also been drafted the year before Hockey Messiah John Tavares joined him, then he subsequently lit it up and managed to outscore Tavares, leading people to wonder if he MacLean wasn't just amazing by himself. Hindsight is 20/20 and while a similar situation, the Leafs obviously hope this is Brown maturing his game. He's a very hard worker and doesn't mind grinding in the corners, that's one of the first noticeable things about his game as you look at the size and points and don't expect it. He's still working on his average skating ability, but each season since being drafted he looks slightly faster and stronger (he couldn't stay on his feet for more than 5 seconds in his draft year). He's known as a leader and a guy who takes his off ice act very seriously. o make the show he will need some hard work in his own end and developing that side of his game. Next season will be a big test for him on the Marlies.
Potential : Second Line Scorer
Thanks for reading. Next five when I wake up.
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