#2. TJ Brennan
The Erik Karlsson of the American Hockey League is TJ Brennan.
He may not have been drafted by the Leafs, but he was still only 24 years old when the Leafs signed him in 2013. Brennan had yet to make an impact on an NHL roster and as someone who was drafted 31st overall in the 2007 NHL Entry Draft, he was still considered a prospect at that time.
Brennan played three seasons in Toronto’s system, with a brief stint in Rockford from 2013 to 2016 and was one of the most gifted offensive defenseman the Marlies has ever seen.
- 2013-14 season: 76 games – 25 goals – 47 assists – 72 points
- 2014-15 season: 19 games – 3 goals – 13 assists – 16 points
- 2015-16 season: 69 games – 25 goals – 43 assists – 68 points
Putting up a point per game in any league as a defenseman is impressive, but multiple 25-goal seasons as a defenseman in the AHL is incredible. During that time-frame, Brennan was named an AHL First Team All-Star team twice.
Other defenseman who have been named as AHL First Team All-Star’s are P.K. Subban and Sami Vatanen, so Brennan is in a very exclusive club.
As much as Brennan was offensively gifted, his crutch was the defensive side of the game.
Although goals are a primary part of the game, if you can’t play solid defense at the NHL level, you’re not going to last long and that’s what happened with Brennan.