Toronto Maple Leafs: Prospect Calle Rosen’s Player Profile
By Josh Tessler
On Monday night, Toronto Maple Leafs fans caught a glimpse of Calle Rosen, a Swedish two-way defensive prospect.
Rosen is an exciting defensive prospect to watch. All of Leafs Nation should be taking a strong look at him, as he could be a staple in the Leafs defensive top six for many years to come.
SHL and Frolunda Background
Rosen grew up in southern Sweden in the town of Växjö. At the age of 16, he joined Frolunda’s U20 youth team. Rosen spent three seasons with Frolunda’s youth club before being loaned to Karlskrona HK.
In Karlskrona, Rosen made his professional debut and played two strong seasons for the squad. He was then loaned to Rogle BK, where he played one season.
After his time for Rogle BK, he returned to Växjö to play for his hometown SHL team, the Lakers. In Växjö, he had two dominant seasons. His 2016-2017 campaign was quite impressive as he had six goals, 13 assists and a plus/minus of 19 in 41 games.
During his time in Växjö, he caught the eye of many NHL teams including the Chicago Blackhawks and the Leafs.
Shortly after the 2016-17 season, Rosen signed a two-year entry-level contract with the Leafs.
Rosen’s First Appearance as a Leaf
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Out of the defensive prospects the Leafs are evaluating in the preseason, Calle Rosen looked like a solid option for the Leafs down the road.
On Monday, Toronto’s defense looked shaky. Morgan Reilly and Ron Hainsey looked terrible together. Both Reilly and Hainsey played up at the blue line and neglected to come back to the defensive zone. Which led to the Ottawa Senators lighting the lamp.
But, Rosen looked like a strong presence on defense. He showcased his strong poke-checking and hockey sense. Late in the first period, Rosen showed off his impressive skill-set by stealing the puck from Senators Gabriel Gagne and setting the up the Leafs on a decent offensive surge.
Even though the Leafs ultimately played sloppy against Ottawa, Mike Babcock shared his thoughts on prospects who caught his eye with Terry Koshan of the Toronto Sun.
"Babcock didn’t enjoy much of what he witnessed in the Leafs’ 6-2 loss against the Ottawa Senators in the pre-season opener for both clubs.The list of Leafs who made a positive impression on Babcock at the Canadian Tire Centre was short.“Who did I like?” Babcock said. “I liked (Travis) Dermott. I liked (Calle) Rosen.”He then took a long pause, though it was clear he had no intention of naming another Leaf."
The Leafs will continue to evaluate Rosen in more preseason hockey as he could be in the lineup on Friday night against the Buffalo Sabres.
Prediction
While Rosen had a strong pre-season debut, I don’t think he’s quite ready to start the season on the Leafs roster. He is used to playing Swedish hockey and might need an adjustment period.
Personally, I believe that Lou Lamoriello will assign Rosen to the Toronto Marlies.
Even though the Leafs have a current hole in their last defensive pairing, Lamoriello and Babcock should look to fill the gap with someone who has experience playing North American hockey.
With Sheldon Keefe’s mentoring, hopefully, Rosen will quickly develop into an NHL-ready defenseman.
I am hoping that Rosen will be on the Leafs opening day roster to start the 2018-19 season.