Toronto Maple Leafs: 2017 NHL Draft Recap
The 2017 NHL Draft is in the books for the Toronto Maple Leafs.
The Toronto Maple Leafs headed into the draft with more questions than they were used to in recent memory. In 2015, it was generally believed they would take Mitch Marner. The following year, it was essentially confirmed that they would take Auston Matthews.
In 2017, however, they owned pick number 17. They had many, many options, and there wasn’t one single player that they were expected to take. In fact, it’s safe to say that not a lot of people expected the Leafs to take who they did at 17, but we’ll get to that later.
In this piece, we’ll take a look at each Leafs pick from the 2017 NHL Draft and how they could fit into the system.
Timothy Liljegren, D
Wait.. WHO?
Fun fact: About one year ago today, the projected top three picks in the 2017 draft included Nolan Patrick, Maxime Comtois, and Liljegren.
While Nico Hischier and Miro Heiskanen eventually squeezed their way into the top three on draft day, Comtois and Liljegren fell.
The Leafs were sitting at 17th overall, and there were a few players that were possibilities for them to draft. Nic Hague, Juuso Valimaki, Conor Timmins to name a few.
However, as picks went by, Liljegren kept falling. After being stricken with Mononucleosis last season, his draft stock seriously fell. He was expected to be a top-three pick, and he ended up being on the board when the Leafs were on the clock. So, naturally, Mark Hunter had no choice but to take the slick defenseman.
The Kristianstad, Sweden native describes himself as a puck-moving, offensive defenseman. He’s drawn comparisons to Justin Faulk and he compares his playing style to Erik Karlsson. He’s got decent size at 6’0 and on top of all this, he’s right handed.
The Leafs needed a future top pairing right-handed defenseman, and assuming all goes well with his development, they’ve found it in Liljegren.
Based on where they were supposed to go, it looks like the Leafs have arguably the biggest steal of the first round. This, along with the Nashville Predators taking Eeli Tolvanen at 30th overall.
Eemeli Rasanen, D
You can say a player needs improvements in almost all areas of the game, but you can’t teach size. Rasanen is a perfect example of this type of player.
The Juoensuu, Finland native stands at a hulking 6’7 and weighs 209 lbs. He spent this season playing for the Kingston Frontenacs of the OHL and he displayed an offensive side to his game, posting 39 points through 66 games.
The Finn describes himself as a two-way defenseman, and he also likes to hit people (no, really, this is a direct quote from Rasanen that can be viewed here). Rasanen will likely play out the rest of his junior career and then join the Marlies to further his development.
The Leafs didn’t own a third round pick in this draft, so let’s take a look at the fourth round, where they had two picks.
Ian Scott, G
After stockpiling on forwards in the 2015 and 2016 NHL Drafts, the Leafs decided to keep stacking up their defense and goalie depth. With this, they took Scott with their first 4th rounder.
The Calgary native spent this season with the Prince Albert Raiders of the WHL. He had a record of 12-31-0 and sported a 3.69 GAA along with a save percentage of .895.
Now, these numbers definitely don’t look good on paper, especially alongside someone like Jake Oettinger or Michael DiPietro, but Scott was also playing on a terrible team.
He’s sound technically and navigates his crease very well. Scott’s a solid goaltender and it will be interesting to see how he performs on a potentially better Raiders team next season.
Vladislav Kara, LW
Every year, Mark Hunter goes out and takes some random Russian player that has little to no scouting information. In 2015 it was Martins Dzierkals. In 2016 it was Nikolai Chebykin. This year, it’s Vladislav Kara.
Honestly though, try to find a highlight reel of Kara’s. I bet it will take tons of digging into the thick of the Internet.
He has an offensive side to his game, putting up 20 points through 31 games playing for the Irbis Kazan of the MHL, but it will be tough to put a label on the Salekhard native until he plays somewhere where there’s a little bit more coverage.
Fedor Gordeev, D
Gordeev is another defenseman who has a skill that you can’t teach, and that’s size. He stands at 6’6 and 209 lbs, almost identical to fellow 2017 Leafs pick, Rasanen.
Gordeev spent last season playing for the Flint Firebirds of the OHL. He put up 13 points through 62 games and played in more of a shutdown role. He’s a Canadian citizen, having moved to Canada from his native Russia at the age of seven.
He grew up in the GTA, and despite there being a Canadian flag next to his name on most forums, don’t be fooled. Everything from his name to his face screams Russian, and he said himself that if he was ever to play at an international level he would represent Russia. He will further his development in the OHL once again next year.
Ryan McGregor, C
McGregor may not have displayed overwhelming stats offensively this season, but he’s supposedly already a very good leader, even at the young age of 17.
He was an alternate captain for the Sting this season and put up 24 points through 65 games. He was the first centre taken by the Leafs in this draft, and he will most definitely stay in the OHL next season to continue his development as a pro hockey player.
Ryan O’Connell, D
Mark Hunter’s scouting knows no limits.
He’s taken players from rural Russia before, and he clearly upped the ante this season by selecting O’Connell from St. Andrew’s College of the CAHS.
To simplify it a little bit, they drafted him out of a Canadian secondary school. This is very, very rare for a Canadian hockey player.
Next: Leafs Reported Offer to the Islanders
For next season, he’s signed with the Penticton Vees of the BCHL and then committed to Boston University for the 2018-19 season. It’s clear that some teams see lots of potential in O’Connell. It will be interesting to see how his hockey career plays out.