Like most teams that wish to have a long lasting franchise, the Toronto Maple Leafs accumulate prospects.
Some of these prospects are drafted by the Toronto Maple Leafs, while others are acquired through trades. Due to the limited number of pro contracts allowed by the NHL (50), some of these prospects go unsigned.
Every season, teams add anywhere from five to ten prospects to their already crowded prospect pool. Sometimes teams add even more than that depending on how many draft picks they have. It is up to the team scouts to continuously watch and evaluate each prospect. Even though many prospects show potential, not all of them make it to the NHL.
Once the Stanley Cup has been awarded, the next big thing for each Franchise is the NHL draft. Only a handful of teams get to choose from the best prospects available on draft day, so many teams rely on their scouting staff to help them find the best of what is left.
Having a good scouting staff can go a long way for any franchise. Once teams start drafting players in the later rounds of the draft, each team is hoping to find a couple of diamonds in the rough. Those players that show potential, but are going to take longer to develop.
Toronto has a fairly substantial list of prospects that still remain unsigned. Some of these prospects are coming up to the deadline for being signed while others have another year or more. The Toronto Maple Leafs will have some tough choices to make on which prospects to keep and which ones to let go of.