Toronto Maple Leafs Should Take A Chance On Sean Day
Sean Day is one of the most interesting prospects in the 2016 NHL Draft, and the Toronto Maple Leafs should absolutely have him on their draft board.
The Toronto Maple Leafs have 12 picks in the draft as it stands right now. Barring any trades to move up that number isn’t going down. One of those picks should be used on Sean Day – and it probably won’t have to be one of the Toronto Maple Leafs first three.
“There’s just no urgency to his game,” a scout said. “It’s all there but he just doesn’t tap into it. He’s great with the puck, a lot of the times anyway, from the top of the circles and up, and that starts to fool you. Someone’s going to gamble on him at the draft, but it’s not going to be us, at least not based on anything I’ll have to say.” (Sportsnet)
Day’s stock is miles away from where it was expected to be when the defender was granted exceptional status in the OHL Priority Selection Draft. That put him in the same breath as John Tavares, Aaron Ekblad and Connor McDavid. That’s some pretty lofty expectations, kid.
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It’s safe to say that Day hasn’t exactly lived up to the title of ‘exceptional’, but that doesn’t mean he doesn’t have what it takes to be a solid NHL defender. It’s already been documented he’s dealt with family issues off the ice that has affected his mindset.
London Knights forward Max Jones thinks highly of his friend in his quote from a Sportsnet article in January:
“He’s been through hard times. Not many people know what he’s been through. He’s always looking forward, looking ahead, [at] what he needs to do. I’m proud of what he’s been doing. It’s been a tough road for him.” (Sportsnet)
The Ontario Hockey League doesn’t grant exceptional status to just anyone, and there’s no reason to believe that what they saw in Sean Day in 2013 still isn’t there. They hit the nail on the head with Tavares, Ekblad and McDavid.
Perhaps a confidence boost like being drafted in the NHL by the Toronto Maple Leafs and joining an organization littered with off-ice legends in the front office and coaching staff will set Day on the right track again.
Curtis Joe from Elite Prospects finished his scouting paragraph on Day with this:
“All-in-all, a talented two-way defenceman that has all of the raw abilities in place to become an elite defenceman, but has yet to put it all together and prove that he can thrive in the driver’s seat.”
That’s about as fair of an assessment as you can get. It’s also something that the Toronto Maple Leafs current super-development group can work with.
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From before he was granted exceptional status, Day was being raved about by just about every single person who had watched him play. They raved about his play with the puck, decision making, skating and more. That just doesn’t magically disappear. He has the tools and the skill-set, he just needs a fresh start to bring them back to the surface.
Maybe he will be a bust, or maybe he’s going to be the steal of the 2016 NHL Draft. At the potential cost of a late second, or early third, round pick I’d much rather gamble on high reward for the Toronto Maple Leafs. Let’s face it, most of the NHL Draft is a crap-shoot anyway.