Toronto Maple Leafs Newest Acquisition to Make Debut?

The Toronto Maple Leafs acquired Alex Galchenyuk in a trade last month.

The former third-overall draft pick has hit the skids in recent years and the Toronto Maple Leafs took a flyer on a reclamation project that may or may not pay off.

Galchenyuk once scored 30 goals for the Montreal Canadiens, but then he was injured and did not appear to be the same.  He went from being traded for Phil Kessel to being traded for Max Domi to clearning waivers, and I think the Leafs picked him up for a ham sandwich.

Now, as delicious as sandwich would be right now, the Leafs have attempted to rebuild Galcnehyuk’s game and we’ll see how that pays off on Friday night against the Flames, if today’s practice lines are any indication.

Toronto Maple Leafs and Alex Galchenyuk

The Leafs appear ready to insert Galchenyuk into the lineup on the left side of a Tavares-Nylander combo.  That is pretty fantastic, and it could really pay off.  However, with the trade deadline looming, Galchenyuk probably doesn’t have long to try and impress.

In six games with the Marlies, to the surprise of no one, Galchenyuk dominated the AHL with eight points and two goals.  

If you are at all interested in why Galchenyuk has struggled since his knee injury and what the Toronto Maple Leafs plan to do about it, this thread by Jack Han (who used to work for the Leafs) is a must read.  Honestly, it’s one of the most interesting things I’ve ever read about hockey, ever.

If the Leafs were able to revive Galchenyuk’s career, they’d have a pretty solid player. The guy once scored 30 goals, and if he can even get anywhere close to that again this would be a huge win.  Perhaps Galchenyuk could even force the Leafs to revises their trade deadline approach.

The Leafs appear to be focused on getting a forward – since they’re about the deepest team in the league at forward, you have to assume they are setting their sights either very high, or very specifically (a Folignoesque defensive presence).

If Galchenyuk is any good, maybe they can focus only on a defensive player, or maybe they spend big on the blue-line.   Still, this seems unlikely, it would seem unlikely that a month of development with the Leafs could completely turn Galchenyuk around.

Still, look what they did with guys like Engvall and Holl.  I don’t think anyone thought those guys were ever going to be as good as they are today.