My Sleeper Pick to Have a Big Impact With the Toronto Maple Leafs

On October 10, 2020, the Toronto Maple Leafs traded Andreas Johnsson to the New Jersey Devils for Joey Anderson.

The deal was seen as a salary dump by most observers.  Sending Johnsson’s cap hit of 3.4 million to the Devils was certainly an important part of the trade, but the Toronto Maple Leafs liked Anderson as a prospect and subsequently signed him to a 3 year contract on October 30.

I expect that Anderson will get a chance to make an impact this season, and there is a chance he surprises people and wins a job out of training camp.

Let’s look in on Anderson and see what the Toronto Maple Leafs have.

Toronto Maple Leafs and Joey Anderson

Joey Anderson was a 3rd round draft pick in 2016 and is a sneaky-good prospect that didn’t really get talked about very much.  This guy had 14 goals and 23 points in 27 International games with the U.S. national teams from 2014-2018.  He was on the U17 and U18 teams, and two WJC teams, all of which reached the medal podium.  He even captained the 2018 Bronze medal team. (stats naturalstatrick.com).

His points came mostly from dirty areas and he is known for his incredible work ethic.  He has good speed, a good shot, anda crazy high compete level.  He’s not a big guy, at 5″11 and 190lbs, but he plays hard and finishes his checks.  He is strong with good balance and he uses those traits to win a lot of puck battles.

He was excellent on the PK and productive on the PP during international play, and at Minnesota-Duluth as well.  His scoring rates in the AHL are not impressive, but they are solid, and it shows that he has some offensive ability to compliment his gritty game.  He’s just a good all-around player that is now 23 years old and ready to compete for an NHL job.  He’s not flashy and he’s probably not going to give you a lot of points, but he can give you good minutes in your bottom six with the ability to chip in some goals.

One of the things that I noticed while researching some of his plays and scouting reports is that he plays really well with talented players.  His game seems to compliment high skill guys.  I’m not saying that he should play in the Leafs top six, but I do think he will look good as a winger while playing with players like Spezza, Kerfoot, and Kase.

On a HockeyBuzzcast from October 12, 2020, Russ Cohen talked a little bit about Joey Anderson and what he brings as a player.  Russ, a great prospect resource, is very familiar with prospects that came up through the USNDP like Anderson did.  He thinks Anderson has more upside than Johnsson, is a greasier player, and could surprise people in the NHL if he gets to play with good players.  It’s a very positive review of a player most people don’t know very much about.

A great interview here from last last year with the Marlies really shows the maturity of Anderson as a young player.  He understands the game and his role, and he’s using the tools at his disposal to keep improving as a player.  It’s that mindset, plus his work ethic, that impresses me the most.

In my comprehensive guide to the summer, I took a look at internal roster options and predicted that Anderson would make the Leafs bottom 6 this year due to his “speed and a work-boots game.”  I’m sticking with that prediction.

I think Anderson can be a useful player on the wing as part of a shut-down line with Kampf.  In that role, he can utilize his strong 200 foot game and tenacity to make life miserable for the opposition.  I also think he can chip in some goals if paired with Spezza, Kerfoot, or Kase, possibly on a 4th line that gets some offensive zone starts.  Either way, I really think this guy will surprise us this year and become a valuable member of the Toronto Maple Leafs.

If he does start with the Marlies, I fully expect him to be called up as an injury replacement.  It is in this scenario that his competitive nature may shine through and he just steals a job.  Once he gets in, he may not let Keefe take him out.