Toronto Maple Leafs: Marlies Forward Report Cards Part Two
With Andreas Johnsson and Kasperi Kapanen now permanent NHLers, one could be led to believe the Toronto Maple Leafs are left with a dearth of young forward talent.
Well, that person would be sorely mistaken.
Last week, we covered part one of the forwards. This week, it’s time for part two. Allow me to fasten on my teaching hat. I’ve got some report cards to write.
Presenting part two of the Toronto Marlies forwards report cards. If you wish to debate your mark, you must schedule a parent-teacher conference. Sorry, it’s school board policy.
Enjoy.
Jeremy Bracco
Grade: A
At the season’s beginning, if you had told me I’d be handing Jeremy Bracco a year-end grade this high, I would’ve thought you were insane. By all accounts, Bracco’s rookie season seemed doomed from the start.
Thanks to a bout with mono, coupled with a summer shortened by the Memorial Cup, reports indicated Bracco had arrived at Leafs training camp in less than game shape. Speaking to those around the organization, they told me Bracco’s conditioning was a real problem.
A rookie winger in an organization stuffed to the gills with just that, Bracco desperately needed to make a positive first impression. Instead, he landed with a thud.
Fast forward to game 72, and Bracco’s early season struggles are nothing but a distant memory.
His 30 points place him sixth in team scoring, coming in just 48 games. As well, the 21-year-old remains a staple on the Marlies’ second PP unit, driving play off the wall.
On a team as skilled as the Marlies, that’s not an easy thing to do. Especially as a rookie.
Shades of Marner
I hesitate to draw comparisons between prospects and current players, but I can’t ignore how much Bracco reminds me of Mitch Marner. The two are small, speedy wingers who sense the game at an elevated speed. And, what Bracco lacks in Marner’s goal-scoring touch, he makes up for with heightened playmaking ability.
As my colleague Dylan Fremlin eloquently puts it:
In all seriousness, Bracco’s on-ice vision is incredible. The AHL is a league where defensive strategies centre around clogging passing lanes and openings in the offensive zone. In spite of this, Bracco’s passes almost always find an open teammate.
I mean, just look at this and tell me you don’t see shades of Marner.
Perhaps the most promising strides Bracco has taken in his first professional season came in his own end.
In most cases, high scoring wingers come out of Major Junior rarely exhibiting defensive prowess. Playing against inferior competition for the bulk of their lives, they’ve simply never been forced to adopt a defensive skillset.
Not Bracco. It took some massaging, but he now stands as a surprisingly capable two-way forward, exhibiting the defensive skill befitting of a player years his senior.
Bracco doesn’t accomplish this by throwing the body or grinding in front of the net. Instead, he uses positional awareness and an innate sense of where the play is going to eliminate gaps in coverage and squeeze opponents to the perimeter.
You simply cannot categorize Bracco’s rookie campaign as anything but a success. The Leafs found a gem in their 2015 second-round pick. If Bracco’s trajectory continues, he’s a Leaf sooner than later.
Colin Greening
Grade: B-
When Colin Greening eventually decides to hang up his skates, he’s going to make one hell of a coach.
Without a doubt, Greening is one of the smartest players I’ve ever had the pleasure of speaking with. He views the game in a way most AHL veterans don’t, and not just in a positional sense. At 32, it’s likely he realizes an NHL shot is behind him, instead fully committing himself to becoming whatever the Marlies need him to be.
Now, Greening isn’t kept around to be a de-facto player-coach. In fact, he remains one of the Marlies most versatile forwards, and an integral component of their lineup.
Playing in all 72 games to this point is far from an easy feat, and yet, Greening hasn’t taken a night off all year. Forming one-third of the Marlies’ shutdown line alongside Frederik Gauthier and Kyle Baun, Greening continues to provide reasonable offensive production.
His 29 points may not jump off the page at first glance. But, they’ve come despite logging serious minutes on the AHL’s top PK unit and beginning the bulk of his shifts in the defensive zone.
That’s not to say Greening is perfect.
The Marlies are one of, if not the fastest teams in the AHL. And that juxtaposition between their overall speed next to Greening’s doesn’t do him any favours. When playing alongside the lineup’s more elusive players, he tends to slow the pace of attack down, looking a step behind throughout.
A UFA this summer, Greening’s future with the Marlies is unclear. If I were a betting man, I’d wager he signs another one-year deal, returning to mentor the next influx of young Marlies, which will likely include names such as Carl Grundstrom, Pierre Engvall and Jesper Lindgren.
Mason Marchment
Grade: B
Mason Marchment serves as a member of the group of Marlies whom I believe possess NHL upside. In fact, Kyle Dubas seemingly shares my opinion, inking Marchment to a two-year ELC back on March 17th.
What initially stands out about Marchment’s game is his heavy shot and physical edge. His wrister is deceptively quick, allowing him to catch goaltenders off guard, opening up the top areas of the net.
In the clip below, look at the way Marchment hesitates for a second once receiving the puck, forcing the opposing goaltender to drop into the butterfly and provide him ample space to pick the corner.
As well, Marchment’s ability to create open space for himself is something to keep an eye on as his development progresses. While he does stand at 6’4″, that height is stretched across a weight of just 201 pounds, responsible for his noticeably lanky frame.
Imagine how differently the play below would turn out if Marchment was only 10 pounds heavier.
Needless to say, if Marchment can bulk up in the summer without significantly sacrificing speed, his path to the NHL becomes a whole lot clearer.
Health Struggles
Now, Marchment’s stat line of 25 points in 42 games certainly looks promising. Although, upon further inspection, it leaves much to be desired.
Namely, Marchment has been the unfortunate beneficiary of the injury bug, missing extended periods with various ailments on two separate occasions.
Specifically, a 14 game absence with a shoulder injury suffered in mid-December derailed an otherwise blistering start to the season. Upon returning, Marchment looked noticeably timid, needing roughly two weeks to return to a semblance of his former self.
And just as he began rounding back into form, riding a streak of seven points in 10 games which began on February 23rd, the injury bug struck again. This time it was self-inflicted, a concussion given to him during a needless fight on March 23rd becoming yet another health hurdle in need of scaling.
A shoulder injury’s one thing, but concussions are no joke.
Thankfully, Marchment has now returned, needing far less time to round back into form. He’s since assumed the departed Kerby Rychel‘s net-front role on the PP while fostering great chemistry with fellow rookies Bracco and Adam Brooks when the trio was paired together for a brief period.
Marchment’s path to the NHL may not be as clear as others in the Marlies locker room, but it exists nonetheless.
Thanks for reading! Stay tuned for part three later this week.