Brazeau may be a giant sleeper
Towering winger will work with Underhill to bring skating up to speed
Winger Justin Brazeau is not like most of the Maple Leafs’ top prospects.
For one thing, he’s six-foot-six, a rarity in a program that seemed to want to corner the market on players under fivefoot-11.
Also, he was never The North Bay Battalion winger was passed over three times by NHL teams.
“My first year, my hopes weren’t too high,” said Brazeau. “My second year, that was more disappointing. Last year, I knew it was a bit of a stretch given what happened the first two years. It was disappointing, but you build on that.” Indeed he did, scoring a battalion-record 61goals to go with 52 assists in 68 games. That caught the attention of NHL scouts, and the Leafs signed the 21-year-old free agent to a twoyear contract with the AHL’s Marlies.
“Toronto was the best fit for me going forward, with their development plan,” the native of New Liskeard, Ont. said Saturday at the Leafs’ development camp. “I can come down here this summer, train and skate. This was the best setup for me. They gave me the best chance at making my pro career go forward.”
There was a time when the Leafs’ summertime camp was filled with players be stars — Auston Matthews, Mitch Marner, William Nylander. These earthing diamonds in the rough. There was no first-round pick in attendance because, well, the Leafs didn’t have a first-round pick this year. And they won't next year either having traded it to Carolina in the Patrick Marleau salary dump.
It’s a precursor of what’s to come: more pressure on the scouting staff to find value in late rounds of the draft and in free agency, players with enough skill to eventually play in the NHL.
Then it’s up to the development staff — who were hard at work this past week at the Mas- ter Card Centre—to bring those players along in a year or two, or three or more.
“We've seen that through some of the players that are with the Leafs right now,” said Scott Pellerin, the Leafs’ senior director of player development. “A guy like (undrafted) Trevor Moore, or a guy like Andrea Johnsson, a seventh-round pick that has gone through a process.
“Our job now is to get the next group of those guys in. This is where a lot of those guys have started. We’re excited to see the progression as they get older.”
Brazeau is earmarked as one of those guys. The Leafs put him on what was arguably the top line in camp, skating with centre Semvon Der-Arguchintsev and winger Nick Robertson — teammates with the OHL’s Peterborough Petes. Robertson was selected 53rd last week and stood as the highest draft pick at this camp. Der-Arguchintsev was the 76th pick in 2018. Both are under five-foot-nine, more indicative of the kind of player the Leafs have been pursuing. Both are fast and skilled.
Fast is not a word associated with Brazeau at this point, but the Leafs think that can chance thanks t to the magical work of skating coach Barb Underhill. He’s never had a power-skating coach.
“The biggest thing for me is the stuff with Barb. I try to put that into my game. I will get or the ice with her as much as I can,” he said. “My weakness is
skating. It’s always been that, my whole career. I’ve got some size. This year, I was able to have a good touch around the net.”
Now he gets to take the lessons learned at this camp and apply them.
“Over the last three or four years, I’ve gotten better every single day, every single year,” he said. “That’s what I’ve got to keep doing. That’s what I ask of myself, and I’m going to give myself m the best chance.”