D- Teemu Kivihalme, 6’0 180
The start of this season has been quiet to say the least for Kivihalme, as he has gone pointless in 8 games so far. It will be tough for him to steal minutes away from the top 4, as he continues to adjust to a new team.
Teemu has to show that he can keep up with the pace of the AHL, or his tenure with Toronto will be a very quick one. I like his overall game and what he brings to the Leafs organization, but he’s another left handed defenseman.
Being a defenseman in Toronto is a great problem to be in- the media is hard to deal with, but the payoff of playing well, is huge. Teemu has shown that he can battle through adversity in Finland and university hockey with Colorado. Now that Teemu is in Toronto, he is going to have to show why it was worth it to take a chance on him.
ETA; To be quite honest, I don’t think Kivihalme has much of a shot cracking the Leafs at this point in time.
Scouting report; A dependable, puck moving d-man, who is capable of eating up important minutes for the Marlies