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Maple Leafs Prospects: Who’s In, Who’s Out For Next Season

By Neal DeRosa

Mar 21, 2016; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Toronto Maple Leafs forward William Nylander (39) and defenceman Jake Gardiner (51) and defenseman Connor Carrick (8) and forward P.A. Parenteau (15) celebrate a goal by Toronto Maple Leafs forward Zach Hyman (not pictured) during the second period against the Calgary Flames at the Air Canada Centre. Mandatory Credit: John E. Sokolowski-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 21, 2016; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Toronto Maple Leafs forward William Nylander (39) and defenceman Jake Gardiner (51) and defenseman Connor Carrick (8) and forward P.A. Parenteau (15) celebrate a goal by Toronto Maple Leafs forward Zach Hyman (not pictured) during the second period against the Calgary Flames at the Air Canada Centre. Mandatory Credit: John E. Sokolowski-USA TODAY Sports /
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For the first time in a while, the Maple Leafs have an interesting problem heading into training camp. Coach Babcock and company will have to decide which Maple Leafs prospects play with the big club, and which will play with the Marlies.

There are a handful of prospects who are currently ready to make the step into the NHL but the coaching staff should not look to rush the development of certain players. With that said, here are prospects I think will start with the Toronto Maple Leafs.

Forwards

Who’s In

Starting with the obvious, William Nylander, Mitchell Marner, Auston Matthews and Nikita Zaitsev will be starting the season at the Air Canada Center next season. After these players, it gets a lot more interesting.

With Kadri, JVR, Komorov, Greening, Bozak, Martin, Nylander, Matthews, Marner, Laich and Michalek shoe-ins to make the team.Peter Holland was placed on waivers Friday, making an extra spot open for the upcoming Maple Leafs prospects. Therefore, there would be two starting wing spots left and three roster spots in all (two scratches, Michalek being one).

In September, Josh Leivo, Brenden Leipsic, Connor Brown, Nikita Soshnikov, Kerby Rychel, Kasperi Kapanen, Zach Hyman, and Andreas Johnson will be looking to occupy those three spots.

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Historically, Babcock has liked to play two skilled players along with a grinder-type player on his forward lines. Therefore, I think the grinding prospects have a better chance to crack the lineup in the short term.

Who’s Out

The skilled scoring forwards like Kasperi Kapanen, Brenden Leipsic, and Andreas Johnson would benefit staying with the Marlies to continue their development. A full season at the Ricoh as the top forwards should do them wonders.

Decision

That leaves Leivo, Soshnikov, Brown, Hyman, and Rychel. The Leafs should have three scoring lines and one checking defensive-zone start one. Connor Brown and Nikita Soshnikov are good fits for the positions on either of those lines. Soshnikov had a good showing with the Maple Leafs last year showing that he can score as well as play the gritty side of the game. I expect Connor Brown to get into one of those three scoring lines as well due to his consistent scoring at both the AHL and NHL levels, although his NHL stint was only seven games.

This last roster spot is difficult, as Rychel, Hyman, and Leivo are NHL-ready and can all help the Maple Leafs. As of right now, Leivo’s play with the Leafs seems to give him an edge for this last position. In addition, his production with the Marlies last year further separates him from the players who are left. Throughout the season, there will be moves from the Leafs to Marlies between these players as the Leafs will give many of these prospects looks throughout the season.

Related Story: Roundtable: The Forward Lines

Defensemen

Who’s In

Nikita Zaitsev could become the pleasant surprise of the season for a lot of Maple Leafs fans, especially those who have not done their homework. Zaitsev is a great skater and has produced above 0.5 PPG with CSKA Moskva. In addition, he had a wonderful showing at the IIHF world championships, where he was voted one of the top two defensemen at the tournament.

Being paired with an elite possession beast like Gardiner could give him the scoring opportunities to put up some big numbers at even strength. Furthermore, thanks to his big shot and puck-moving abilities, Babcock could even place Zaitsev on the number one powerplay; therefore, it could be in for a big season.

The trade for Martin Marincin could be a dark-horse for one of the best moves the Leafs have made in the past few years. Marincin has posted great possession stats and could produce at a decent level if given the ice time, better line mates and has similar amount offensive zone-starts as last year. He should see some time playing alongside Morgan Reilly, as well as time on the bottom pairing.

Who’s Out

Rinat Valiev, Justin Holl, Viktor Loov and Travis Dermott will almost surely be on the Marlies unless they have an extraordinary training camp.

Conclusion

With Reilly, Gardiner, Zaitsev, Polak, Hunwick and Marincin on the Maple Leafs next year, that leaves one spot for Corrado, Carrick, and Campbell to fight for. After signing a two year deal Friday, Carrick should be the best fit player to fill this spot.

Next: Carrick Is A Great Signing

His playoff production alone makes him the clear favourite for this roster spot going into training camp. In addition, he posted a +5.78 last season in 5v5 Score Adjusted dFen60, which put him far ahead of any other Maple Leafs defensemen (small sample of 16 games).

Which prospects do you think will make the Leafs? Do you agree or disagree? Which prospects will break out? Comment below!

Follow @NickDes52 for tweets and more articles from Nick DeSouza.

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