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Top 10 Toronto Maple Leafs Draft Misses: 1990s Edition

By Stephen Nixon

TORONTO - OCTOBER 13: Pavel Kubina #77 of the Toronto Maple Leafs handles the puck during the game against the St.Louis Blues at Air Canada Centre on October 13, 2008 in Toronto, Ontario. (Photo By Dave Sandford/Getty Images)
TORONTO - OCTOBER 13: Pavel Kubina #77 of the Toronto Maple Leafs handles the puck during the game against the St.Louis Blues at Air Canada Centre on October 13, 2008 in Toronto, Ontario. (Photo By Dave Sandford/Getty Images) /
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TORONTO – OCTOBER 13: Pavel Kubina #77 of the Toronto Maple Leafs . (Photo By Dave Sandford/Getty Images)
TORONTO – OCTOBER 13: Pavel Kubina #77 of the Toronto Maple Leafs . (Photo By Dave Sandford/Getty Images) /

#8. Pavel Kubina (1996 NHL Entry Draft, 7th Round, 179th Overall)

Toronto’s Actual Pick: 7th Round, 178th Overall (Reggie Berg)

You’d think a 6-foot-4, 260 pound defenseman would get drafted much higher than the seventh round, but that can’t be said about Pavel Kubina.

As can be seen with a number of drafts in the 1980s and 90s, the International Scouting wasn’t like it is today because there are a number of different examples of European players drafted late that bloom into Hall-of-Famers.

Kubina isn’t going to make the Hall-of-Fame, but he was still a good defenseman.

Just shy of 1000 games, Kubina played 970 games while contributing 386 points. During the Tampa Bay Lightning’s Stanley Cup season in 2003-04, Kubina was a top-two defenseman alongside Dan Boyle and played an important role on the back-end helping his team to victory.

Kubina’s best offensive seasons actually came in Toronto when he scored back-to-back 40 point seasons.

Although the Leafs had a few good defenseman like Tomas Kaberle, Bryan McCabe and Bryan Berard in the late 1990s and early 2000s, Kubina would have been a great addition on the blue-line.

#7. Tomas Holmstrom (1994 NHL Entry Draft, 10th Round, 257th Overall)

Toronto’s Actual Pick: 10th Round, 256th Overall (Sergei Berezin)

For die-hard Toronto Maple Leafs fans, the Berezin pick here could be one of their favorite players of the 90s.

I know it was for me. Berezin was an electric player who could deke past every defender, but losing the puck at the opponents blue-line was his specialty. If he could have controlled the puck more, he could have had a 50 goal season one year.

Instead, 20 goals was a given for him, while his best season came in 1998-99 when he potted 37.

Enough about Berezin though.

Despite the fun that he gave fans, the team missed out on Holmstrom, who would torment goaltenders in-front of the net and be a key piece to the Detroit Red Wings’ success.

There was no better player in the NHL at screening goaltenders and his ability to do this was so valuable. Holmstrom was also so consistent with his play and was guaranteed to get anywhere between 15-to-25 goals each season.

Not only could he produce offensively, but he finished his career with over 1000 NHL games played and four Stanley Cup championships

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