#3. Pierre Engvall
Talk about a fall from grace. Engvall seemed like a great secondary-scoring option with the Leafs and turned into someone who couldn’t crack the top-12.
With the many forward additions, Engvall has seemed like the odd-man out and someone who will fit perfectly on the “Taxi-Squad.” Although that squad is better than another season in the AHL, playing everyday minutes in the NHL is every player’s dream.
Engvall was previously outside of the top-12 but an injury to Alex Kerfoot has given him a great opportunity on the third-line beside Mikheyev and Hyman. Both of those wingers are sound defensively and can retrieve the puck, which should help create scoring chances for Engvall.
As a result, Engvall has a great chance to prove to the Leafs that he should be in the line-up every night, instead of on the “Taxi Squad” or AHL. Even if he scores a hat-trick, it’s not going to be enough to push Alex Kerfoot out of the third-line centre position, but a great game could make the Leafs think.
The “Taxi-Squad” is going to be an interesting wrinkle to the Leafs line-up this season, so a great performance by Engvall could make him a shoe-in to replace Jason Spezza on the fourth-line centre position every other night.