Plenty of help available on the farm
MAPLE LEAFS Leafs will look to prospects from the Marlies to fill several roles on roster next year
The day before general manager Kyle Dubas sat down with the Maple Leafs for their exit interviews, he did the same thing with the Toronto Marlies.
He had a specific message for his pool of prospects in the American Hockey League.
“What their opportunity is going to be in training camp was made abundantly clear,” said Dubas. “We do need those players to begin converting from being good prospects and good Marlies to good players for the Leafs.”
Put bluntly, there aren’t going to be gems like Calder Trophy finalist Michael Bunting in every crop of free agents, so there will be NHL jobs available.
The organization has done a terrific job of developing wingers in recent years. Connor Brown, Andreas Johnsson, Kasperi Kapanen, Trevor Moore, Mason Marchment and Carl Grundstrom are among those developed largely in the Marlies system, then traded to address more immediate needs.
Brown, Johnsson and Kapanen were moved largely for salary-cap room. Moore and Grundstrom were part of bigger deals for Jake Muzzin, Jack Campbell and Kyle Clifford. Given a do-over, Dubas probably wouldn’t have sent Marchment to Florida for Denis Malgin.
The wingers were deemed expendable because others were pressing for jobs, most notably Pierre Engvall, developed by the Marlies, and Russian free-agent Ilya Mikheyev. And the organization has shown tremendous patience in bringing along defencemen Rasmus Sandin and Timothy Liljegren.
Two of their highest-ranked prospects won’t be available soon. Centre Rodion Amirov, a first-round pick in 2019, has a brain tumour and is expected to undergo a second round of chemotherapy. And Matthew Knies, a Shane Doan-like second-rounder (2021) who represented the United States at the Olympics, is returning to college.
But the well is far from empty. Here’s a look at the top of the prospects table:
FORWARDS
Pontus Holmberg
The five-foot-11 centre’s name was the first one out of Dubas’s mouth when asked about prospects. He’s 23, shoots left, was drafted in the sixth round in 2018 and put up a couple of good years in Sweden. The Leafs have done well with players who develop overseas (Engvall was another). Holmberg joined the Marlies for the final six games of their season, putting up two goals and two assists. He was also on Sweden’s Olympic team. “We feel he’ll challenge for the roster,” said Dubas.
Nick Robertson
It feels like time for the 20-year-old left-winger to get a clear shot at a top-six role. If Mikheyev leaves as a free agent, Robertson could get a chance. But injuries have been an issue: He played just 26 games with the Marlies, 10 with the Leafs. It won’t be the end of the world if the 2019 second-rounder needs another year of seasoning. “One thing he really elevated was his shot selection,” said Marlies coach Greg Moore. “Shooting from anywhere can be good at times, but he was a lot more selective in getting into the right areas, possessing the puck or extending the possession to get those better looks, to get those higher quality chances.”
Alex Steeves
The undrafted rookie centre from Notre Dame jumped to the front of the queue by putting up 23 goals in 58 games with the Marlies, despite starting the season injured. He got into three NHL games and has some versatility. “He did a really good job at problem-solving his way through the schedule, the season, the workload,” said Moore. “If he found himself in a little bit of a dip, he was quick to come out of it by asking the right questions, going through the right process of figuring out what’s needed. And if he wasn’t producing it, how else he can have an impact.”
Nick Abruzzese
Leafs coach Sheldon Keefe had positive things to say about the Harvard product and how plays didn’t end on his stick, that he always found a way to keep the action going. The 22- year-old, a fourthround pick in 2019, finished the season in the NHL and scored his first goal. Some seasoning with the Marlies
might be in order, however.
Curtis Douglas
How does six-feet-eight, 249 pounds sound? If he makes the NHL, he’d be one of the biggest centres ever. The Marlies signed him to an AHL contract and he was so impressive (13 goals, 21 assists) that the Leafs gave him to a twoyear, entry-level deal. “He came in here and got a lot of confidence early,” said Marlies GM Ryan Hardy. “He probably produced to a level that I didn’t expect. I also felt that his competitiveness, his ability to fight ... I’m certainly glad I wasn’t on the other end of those events. You look at him and you start to project what he could be as he continues.”
Bobby McMann
Like Douglas, he signed an AHL deal to start the season and earned an entry-level contract. McMann ended up with 24 goals, a record for Marlies rookies (Josh Leivo had 23 in 2013-14). He’s 25, though, and a bit like a late-blooming Adam Brooks. “When I met with him (early in the season) I challenged him,” said Hardy. “I said, ‘Hey, I love your work ethic. I love your mindset. I love the power that you bring. I want you to continue to evolve your game and make more eastwest plays and be a little more creative.’ For him to come in here and break that record for rookie scoring just speaks to the quality player he is.”
Joey Anderson
Acquired from the New Jersey Devils for Johnsson, Anderson is 23 and has 58 NHL games to his credit. After a 26-goal season with the
Marlies, it’s time to assert himself as a bona fide NHLer. He finished the year as a healthy scratch on the Leafs playoff roster.
DEFENCE
Joseph Duszak
The 24-year-old was a second-team AHL all-star (seven goals, 44 assists) and will be knocking on the door — with the Leafs or another team. The restricted free agent is undersized at five-foot-nine, but shoots right and can run a power play.
Topi Niemelä
The 20-year-old, drafted in 2020, is one of the top defencemen in Finland. He recently signed an entrylevel deal and will be at training camp. If he doesn’t make the Leafs, he’ll return to Finland.
Kristians Rubins
The 24-year-old worked his way up from the ECHL’s Newfoundland Growlers and got into three games with the Leafs. He’s six-foot-four, and the Leafs have shown patience with big-bodied defencemen (Justin Holl was another) who sometimes take longer to develop.
GOALTENDING
Joseph Woll
Woll’s NHL cameo (3-1-0 with a shutout) backs up what many scouts believe: Some goalies are simply better in the NHL than they show in the AHL, given the quality of players around them and chances they face. A late-season injury hurt his progress, but he got a new deal and should get as long a look as Erik Källgren will for the Leafs backup job.