Will These 5 Prospects Earn Contracts with the Maple Leafs?

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CHICAGO, IL – JUNE 24: General manager Lou Lamoriello of the Toronto Maple Leafs looks on during the 2017 NHL Draft at United Center on June 24, 2017 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by Dave Sandford/NHLI via Getty Images) /

Pierre Engvall

HV71 (SHL): 31 games, 7 goals, 20 points

Engvall is a winger who is currently 21 years old. He was drafted in the seventh round of the 2014 NHL Entry Draft, in the seventh round.

Back in early October, it seemed that Pierre Engvall’s hopes of earning an ELC with the Leafs were over. After a solid start to his first season in the SHL, Engvall suffered a bad injury that kept him out for the better part of two months.

Although he faced this adversity, Engvall came back to SHL action in December and has not missed a beat. The 6-foot-4 winger posted 16 points in 23 regular season games after coming back from injury, scoring at an even higher rate than earlier in the year.

Over the entire regular season, Engvall played in 31 games for the defending champions HV71, scoring 20 points. That’s good for ninth in U24 SHL scoring, also coming in at a very intriguing 30.63 NHLe.

Engvall has been on fire to end the year as well, scoring in the final five regular-season games. In HV71’s postseason opener, he continued his points streak to six with the team’s opening goal. If anyone has been making a good case for an ELC, it’s been Pierre Engvall.

I would be surprised if he doesn’t receive a contract. His combination of size and speed is very impressive and Engvall has shown the ability to score at multiple levels. The next step is to bring him over to see if the Leafs have another seventh-round Swedish steal.

For more on Engvall, check out this piece from EIL’s own Alex Hobson on the underrated prospect.

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