#3 Timothy Liljegren
Timothy Liljegren was playing in the AHL before he was supposed to be. Due to an extremely dumb rule that says players have to either be in junior hockey or the OHL after they are drafted, Liljegren was one of the few exceptions allowed to play at his age.
As one of the youngest players in the AHL Liljegren had a ton of success. He is a very, very good NHL prospect.
He may not end up being a top pairing player, but he’s almost guaranteed to make the show, and it’s not impossible that he ends up being a star.
He seems to have lost some of his hype, but that is Toronto for you.
If a team that had recently developed four or five draft picks into superstar, you’d be happy, now that that team was a contender, to have Liljegren as your top prospect.
But the fact that he’s #3 on this list speaks to the strength of the Leafs program and drafting abilities.
Will he be trade bait?
Will he top out as a #4 defenseman?
Will he partner with Rasmus Sandin to be one of the best pairings in the NHL someday?
We just don’t know. He made his NHL debut last week and looked fine in limited minutes. The future is bright for Liljegren and the Leafs, and if he survives in Toronto past this year’s trade deadline, expect to see him as a staple of the Leafs blueline for years to come.