Toronto Maple Leafs Announce First Round of Cuts

The Toronto Maple Leafs made the first step towards whittling down their roster today by announcing the first round of training camp cuts.

Opening camp with a hefty roster in excess of 70 players, the Leafs make the trip back to Toronto now housing just 46.

The list of those who didn’t make the cut can be seen below.

The first round of cuts typically consists of two groups. One is made up of career AHLers with no real shot at ever making the jump, the other an amalgamation of junior eligible teenagers attending camp simply to get a taste of the organization.

That’s basically what the Leafs put forth here. In all, 7 players will be returning to their respective junior teams while 17 others are re-assigned to the Marlies prior to their training camp in roughly a week.

Then again, there are some notable takeaways from the list.

2018 second round pick, Sean Durzi, has remained mum as to where the Leafs intend for him to play this season, and his name ends up among the group heading to Marlies camp. If he does indeed spend time in the AHL, Durzi will be fighting for playing time on perhaps the most loaded blueline in the league, similar to the path Timothy Liljegren rode down a year ago.

Jesper Lindgren has been loaned to HPK of Finland’s Liiga as well.

Lindgren’s return to the finish league has been a widely unkept secret for the entirety of the summer, especially since he still has one year remaining on his contract. Even after spending a brief 4-game stint on the Marlies via a PTO in 2017-18, Lindgren appears to be in line for a featured role on HPK, something he wouldn’t have received in the AHL.

Then there’s Mac Hollowell, another 2018 pick, who will attend Marlies camp rather than return to the Sault St. Marie Greyhounds. Hollowell’s game is perhaps the rawest of his two draft compatriots, those being Durzi and first rounder Rasmus Sandin, and yet still seems to be getting a shot at jumping to the pros. Whether he actually sticks is still up for debate, but it’s intriguing nonetheless.

Speaking of Sandin, he managed to survive the first round of cuts, which could tell us a number of things. Sandin’s landing spot for 2018-19 is up in the air as well, and his continued presence at Leafs camp only hints further towards his reluctance to return to junior.

At this point, the two options appear to be joining the Marlies or returning to the SHL to suit up for Rogle.

Either way, there will certainly be more news in the days to come.

Thanks for reading!