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Toronto Maple Leafs: The Prospect No One Talks About

By Alex Hobson

SUNRISE, FL - JUNE 26: Kyle Dubas and Mike Babcock of the Toronto Maple Leafs attend the 2015 NHL Draft at BB
SUNRISE, FL - JUNE 26: Kyle Dubas and Mike Babcock of the Toronto Maple Leafs attend the 2015 NHL Draft at BB /
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The Toronto Maple Leafs organization is stacked with prospects.

Of course we already knew that. Before, it was Nylander, Marner, and Matthews. Now that those three have graduated to NHL stars, there’s Andreas Johnsson, Carl Grundstrom, and Travis Dermott (who doesn’t look like he’ll ever see the minors again).

Needless to say, the Leafs prospect system is looking much, much nicer than it did, say, seven years ago. They’ve excelled with their high selections (Matthews and Marner at first and fourth overall respectively) and they’ve managed to seemingly uncover some gems in the late rounds (Johnsson).

With all the hype surrounding these guys, there are some prospects who fly under the radar and excel despite never being mentioned. It happened with Johnsson until he came to North America and began to dominate the AHL. I’m here to introduce you to another prospect who’s doing pretty well despite never being brought up in conversation.

His name is Pierre Engvall.

His Career Overseas

Engvall was drafted at 188th overall in the seventh round of the 2014 draft. The Ljungby, Sweden native caught the eyes of Leafs brass after an impressive rookie stint with Frolunda HC J20, the junior team of Frolunda HC, the professional Swedish team. He put up 35 points in 39 games in that season.

After absolutely dominating the league the following year with 51 points in 38 games, Engvall was deemed ready for the pros and was given a spot playing for Mora IK of the Allsvenskan league (essentially the Swedish equivalent of the AHL, but the talent gap is much smaller). Engvall didn’t look out of place with Mora IK and put up 24 points in 50 games his first season, and 40 points in 50 games in his second.

And from there, he just kept moving up.

Engvall is currently playing for HV71 of the SHL, Sweden’s top professional league. He’s come far from disappointing in his first SHL campaign, putting up a more than respectable 20 points in 31 games.

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What he Brings to the Ice

The biggest questions surrounding these international prospects is whether or not they can translate their game to North America. Sometimes they do, and sometimes you get guys like Jonas Gustavsson who simply can’t make it work overseas. But if the Leafs choose to give Engvall a shot in North America, let’s take a look at what he brings.

The first thing you’ll notice is that he has a hearty combination of size and speed, which isn’t easy to come by. He’s a big guy at 6’4 and 192lbs, and yet he moves very quickly on the ice, as you’ll see in the GIF below.

Oh, and he has a hell of a shot. Seriously, watch this video and look at how quickly he can go end to end. Impressive for a player of his size.

A few days ago, I wrote an article about Carl Grundstrom and what he will bring with him when he comes overseas. Grundstrom is one of the Leafs’ most hyped up prospects given his skillset and production in the SHL for his age. But if you compare the seasons they’re having, the two Swedes are very similar. Grundstrom is averaging 0.68 points per game at age 20 while Engvall is averaging 0.64 at age 21. Grundstrom has more of an edge to his game and is better physically while Engvall has the advantage speed and size wise.

As I stated earlier, whether or not Engvall can translate this production to North America is the question at this point. He appeared in one professional game with the Marlies and seemed to have trouble adjusting to the smaller ice. However, one game is as small of a sample size as you can get.

Next: Will the Leafs Look to Trade for Tavares Rights?

A full season overseas will truly show us if we’re getting a future NHLer or not, but his track record is impressive thus far.

Thanks for reading.

All statistics obtained from eliteprospects.com

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