3 Different Scenarios For the Toronto Maple Leafs On Draft Night
The NHL Entry Draft is going to be an exciting night for the Toronto Maple Leafs.
Instead of getting ready for the season opener on the first Tuesday of October, the Toronto Maple Leafs will be participating in the 2020 NHL Entry Draft. Currently holding the 15th pick, expect the rumors to swirl until they make that selection.
The NHL Entry Draft has been a welcomed occasion for Leafs fans over the past decade. Thanks for their drafting and developing skills, the team has at least one high-quality player on their current roster from every draft since 2012.
- 2012: Morgan Rielly
- 2013: Andreas Johnsson
- 2014: William Nylander
- 2015: Mitch Marner and Travis Dermott
- 2016: Auston Matthews
- 2017: Timothy Liljegren
- 2018: Rasmus Sandin
- 2019: Nick Robertson
I know that only three of those nine picks were outside of the first round but Liljegren (17th overall) and Sandin (29th overall) were picks past the Leafs current selection, so it’s possible the team will find another quality player with the 15th pick.
Although it’s possible to find a high-end prospect with the 15th overall selection, typically that player will be an average or slightly above-average NHL player. Someone who will definitely help your team, but not someone who will be a franchise player. However, since this draft is stacked, it may be a harder decision for the Leafs on what to do with their pick.
When it comes to their selection (if they actually make it), I hope they don’t draft upon need and instead go with the best possible player available. Within a number of mock-drafts, people are slotting a right-handed defenseman for the Leafs, but in my opinion that doesn’t make any sense. Why take a prospect who probably won’t play for the team for another two years based on a need you have now? That need could be completely different in two years, so take the best possible player. Always.
Anyway, let’s look at three different scenarios that could happen to the Leafs on Draft Night.
#3. Make A Selection with the 15th Pick
We’ll start with the most boring result. There’s a ton of rumors that the Leafs will trade the 15th overall selection, but let’s assume they don’t and actually draft in the spot they have.
This year’s NHL Entry Draft is stacked with prospects, so a 15th overall pick in this draft could very well be similar to a top-10 selection any other year. That means that it would be very smart of the Leafs to keep this pick and draft accordingly.
As I mentioned before, if the team keeps this pick and makes a selection, don’t expect them to select a right-handed defenseman. The team needs to draft the best player available and not necessarily on need. If the Leafs followed Bob McKenzie’s final draft rankings, they would be getting Hendrix Lapierre with the 15th overall pick. Obviously those rankings don’t mean anything as every team has a different ranking system, but Lapierre would be a great selection.
Lapierre was injured during the 2019-20 season, so if this draft took place in June, he may have been a question-mark. However, now that’s he’s completely healthy, it’s possible that he may not even be on the board at 15 anymore. However, if he is, the Leafs should consider drafting the 6-foot centre from Gatineau, Quebec. His puck-carrying skills and speed are some of his best features, which would look great on this Leafs roster.
Two other players that the Leafs could grab with their 15th overall selection are Braden Schneider or Ridly Greig. Although I mentioned the Leafs shouldn’t draft on need, Schneider would be a tough player to pass up. According to TSN’s Craig Button, he’s a “fiercely competitive, in-your-face player with a take-no-prisoners approach. He is a player opponents will have no joy facing. Has progressed significantly over three seasons in all areas.”
Greig on the other hand is a two-way centre that can play on the edge. Drawing comparisons to Brayden Schenn and Nazem Kadri, Greig has the potential of becoming a second-line/third-line two-way centre.
#2. Move Up Or Down in Draft
This is the least-likely possibility for the Leafs on Draft night, but it definitely could happen. Toronto has shown over the past few years that they can find diamonds in the rough with later selections (Rasmus Sandin, Nick Robertson), but their core is also made up of high draft picks (Auston Matthews, Mitch Marner, William Nylander, Morgan Rielly, John Tavares).
Let’s talk about trading up first. If the Leafs were to trade their 15th overall selection and move up in the Draft, there aren’t too many teams to work with. The Anaheim Ducks (6th overall) and Minnesota Wild (9th overall) are the two candidates that seem possible to make a deal with. The Leafs have been rumored to the Ducks in a Josh Manson deal for a while, so maybe swapping picks could be feasible if meant the Leafs took on David Backes contract or something. Although that’s not realistic, it’s possible.
Minnesota needs goaltending so maybe a Freddie Andersen deal could entice the Leafs if it meant trading the 9th overall pick for the 15th overall pick as well to move up. Who knows, but trading up seems incredibly unlikely.
Trading down is way more likely, based on the philosophy of Kyle Dubas. They’ve done this before in the 2018 NHL Entry Draft by trading from 25th to 29th and they still got Rasmus Sandin. Based on how stacked this Draft is, the Leafs would be a better situation to trade down and have two more picks, than one. They need to have as many Entry Level Contracts for the next five years, so if they think they can find two NHL quality players high in the first-round or second-round, then it may be worth trading down.
#1. Trade Pick For NHL Player
A first-round pick is one of the best trade assets an NHL team possesses, so expect the Leafs to trade the pick for an NHL player. There have been rumors about the Leafs trading this pick for weeks, ever since they acquired it from Pittsburgh.
The Leafs are in win-now mode, which means they can sacrifice their first-round selection. If this means they’re able to acquire a right-handed defenseman, then they should probably roll the dice.
No matter who that 15th overall selection turns into, the Leafs should trade the pick if it means upgrading their team today. It’s so hard to make trades in the NHL nowadays, and it’s just as hard to trade for a defenseman, so if they have to part ways with their first-rounder, so be it.
But what type of defenseman would a first-round pick get you? Could you get Josh Manson from Anaheim? Matt Dumba from Minnesota? Adam Larsson in Edmonton?
I doubt Pittsburgh would want to part ways with Kris Letang, but maybe returning their first-round pick for Letang could be part of a package to move him to Toronto. I have no idea what type of package the Leafs could get, but I do know that they should entertain it. Teams start to get very desperate on Draft night and it’s the one time of the year that you can make a real hockey deal, because you have time to figure out your salary cap in the off-season.
Next. 3 Reasons The Leafs Don't Need First Round Pick. dark
If the Toronto Maple Leafs trade their first-round pick for a quality defenseman, that would be amazing, but either way the team is in a great spot holding the 15th overall pick.