Who the Toronto Maple Leafs will Draft (7 Round Mock Draft)

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PLYMOUTH, MI – FEBRUARY 16: K’Andre Miller #19 of the USA Nationals skates up ice with the puck against the Russian Nationals during the 2018 Under-18 Five Nations Tournament game at USA Hockey Arena on February 16, 2018 in Plymouth, Michigan. USA defeated Russia 5-4. (Photo by Dave Reginek/Getty Images)*** Local Caption *** K’Andre Miller /

1st Round, 25th Overall – K’Andre Miller (D, USNTDP, USHL)

The Toronto Maple Leafs lucked out in 2015 and 2016 by earning the right to draft two franchise forwards in Mitch Marner and Auston Matthews. The year after they drafted Matthews, they made the playoffs and earned the 17th overall pick, and drafted Timothy Liljegren. With their first rounder sitting at 25th this year, I think they go with another defenseman and select K’Andre Miller.

The reality is, the Leafs’ biggest need is centre depth and defense. And lucky for them, this draft is loaded with them in the early rounds. But I think the Leafs are going to settle with a defenseman in the late first round and go with Miller, who has been compared to Seth Jones in terms of his playstyle.

The only concern with Miller is that he has holes to fill in the defensive aspect of his game, but that’s why the Leafs have Mike Babcock. He did wonders for guys like Nazem Kadri, an elite two-way forward, who had the exact same issue coming out of the draft. Obviously with Kadri being a forward and Miller being a defenseman it’s not easy to compare them, but it shows that Babcock knows what he’s doing when dealing with the defensive side of a player’s game.

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