Drafting the Current Toronto Maple Leafs Roster In Their Prime

Tenth Overall Pick – Wayne Simmonds

The final pick in this draft belongs to Simmonds, a gritty player beloved by his teammates. He is a skilled right-winger with the ability to create offense while also keeping opponents honest with his physical play.

The 32-year old from Scarborough, Ontario was originally drafted by the Kings in the second round of the 2007 NHL Entry Draft. He was the final pick of the round, selected 61st overall. For comparison’s sake, this was 13 slots ahead of the Maple Leafs’ bust prospect, Dale Mitchell.

Simmonds is now in his 13th year in the NHL, playing for his sixth different club. He spent three years with the Kings before he was traded to the Philadelphia Flyers along with a second-round draft pick and Brayden Schenn for Rob Bordson and Mike Richards.

The swap, the first of three times Simmonds would be traded in his career, worked out for both teams. Simmonds’s best years were played in Philadelphia. He was with the Flyers for eight years where he had a pair of 60 point seasons. He even scored north of 30 goals twice.

Thanks to Simmonds’s name being synonymous with toughness, some forget just how productive the six-foot-two, 2018-19 Mark Messier Leadership Award winner has been. In Philadelphia, he had a points-per-game average of 0.65. He was even a top-10 powerplay goal-getter four times in his career.

The Maple Leafs signed Simmonds to a one-year deal worth $1.5 million. They brought him to Toronto because of the tools he brings to the ice and his leadership. While he isn’t the player he once was, Simmonds has proven that he’s still a valuable contributor in the NHL.