Toronto Maple Leafs: Dubas Makes 1st Trade

The Toronto Maple Leafs and Edmonton Oilers have made a minor trade.

The Toronto Maple Leafs have traded the rights to Nolan Vesey, acquiring a conditional 2020 seventh-round pick from the Edmonton Oilers.

Vesey was a 2014 sixth-round pick of the Toronto Maple Leafs. He has played the last four seasons at the University of Maine, where he has put up very lackluster numbers. Despite this, the Edmonton Oilers have obviously seen some potential in the 23-year old left winger, acquiring his rights for a 2020 seventh-round pick and immediately signing him to a two-year entry-level contract.

Over his collegiate career, Vesey was never able to become the dynamic force the Leafs were hoping he would become when they selected him back in 2014. Drafted after a 66 point season with the South Shore Kings, Vesey joined the Maine Black Bears for the 2014-15 season.

Things started well for him, posting an impressive 23 points in 36 games as a freshman. Despite the intriguing start, Vesey was never able to improve above that production. His sophomore year was atrocious, with just 11 points in 36 games. His junior and senior seasons improved on the sophomore slump, but Vesey simply didn’t improve enough on his freshman numbers to show any kind of solid development to warrant an ELC with the Maple Leafs.

In total, Nolan Vesey scored 39 goals and 82 points over 142 games in his four-year career at the University of Maine, for a PPG of 0.57.

For a direct comparison, Blaine Byron was a college free agent last spring out of the University of Maine. Byron scored 16 more points his senior season (2015-16) than Vesey (2016-17), outscoring him in his sophomore and junior seasons as well.

In Byron’s first professional season, the 23-year old center scored only 13 points in 39 games with the Springfield Thunderbirds of the AHL. Simply put, it doesn’t look like Nolan Vesey will amount to much of anything.

A Subtle, but Smart Move

Getting any kind of asset for Vesey is a win for the Leafs. He certainly was not receiving an ELC, and adding another lottery ticket in the 2020 seventh-round pick is more than enough value.

Toronto is beginning to load up on an inefficiency. The Leafs now own six seventh-round picks in the next three drafts, including three in the 2020 draft. While most will scoff at the minimal asset a seventh-round pick is, Toronto has added the likes of Pierre Engvall, Andreas Johnsson, and Garret Sparks in the seventh round in recent years. Teams will essentially give them away, so you might as well take them and play the odds.

Next: Leafs Lose Rights to 3 Prospects

This trade is asset management at its finest. And it begins to build a relationship between Kyle Dubas and Peter Chiarelli. This is a subtle, but very nice first trade for the new look Leafs front office.