Top 5 Toronto Maple Leafs NHL Entry Draft Busts of All-Time

The Toronto Maple Leafs have notoriously had pretty poor luck when it comes to draft picks.

Besides a few stars, it’s been underwhelming returns consistently and between that and poor asset management, it’s a mixed bags at the draft table for the Toronto Maple Leafs.

Until recently, they haven’t had a large number of “homegrown talent” which has lead to them having a lack of real playoff success since well, 1967.

They could get away with it in the pre-cap world when team’s with larger pocket books could buy talent. Now, with ELC contracts becoming a very valuable commodity, teams rely on the draft more and more to fill out their roster.

Leading up to the draft, I thought it would be fun to take a look back at some of the more notable busts in Leafs history. (stats from hockeyreference.com and wikipedia.com).

5. Egor Korshkov

Although Korshkov’s career isn’t complete, the 31st overall selection in 2016 hasn’t played an NHL game in two seasons.

Drafted as a double over-ager, the pick was puzzling at the time and has not aged well since. In 2015-16, Korshkov played in 41 games in the KHL with Lokomotiv Yaroslavl, scoring a single goal and two assists for three points.

Not terrible production from a teenager in the KHL, who was used sparingly, it still left a lot to be desired. The main reason many theorized for his draft choice was that he lead the Russian Junior Team in scoring en route to a Silver medal at the World Juniors that year.

Over the next three seasons with Yaroslavl, Korshkov faced some major ups and downs, from roster decisions to breaking his leg. In that span, he managed to play in 107 games scoring 17 goals and 33 assists for 50 points. This lead to him signing a two-year entry level contract with the Toronto Maple Leafs ahead of the 2019-20 season. In his first pro season in North America, he played 44 games with the Toronto Marlies, scoring 16 goals and nine assists for 25 points. He was even called for one game with the Maple Leafs where he scored a goal but was quickly sent back down.

After the Covid-19 pandemic caused delays to the NHL and AHL seasons, Korshkov went back to the KHL in 2020-21 where has has played the past two seasons. Since going back, he has 28 goals and assists for 56 points in 103 games. He has also seen his NHL rights traded twice from the Maple Leafs to the Carolina Hurricanes, and then to the Florida Panthers where he remains unsigned. It’s always possible the soon-to-be 26 year old comes back over to revive his NHL career but it’s unlikely.

Now, we’ll take a look at some of the players Korshkov was picked ahead of. Most of these players were ranked higher than him by public rankings in 2016, so it really stings to see some of these names. Like: Jordan Kyrou, Alex DeBrincat, Samuel Girard, Carter Hart, and Filip Hronek.

 Toronto Maple Leafs All-Time Bust # 4. Jeff Ware

Drafted 15th overall in 1995, Jeff Ware was a bruising defenseman listed at 6-4 220lbs.

In his draft year with the Oshawa Generals, he amassed only 13 points in 55 games and added 86 penalty minutes. In his next two seasons with the Oshawa Generals, Ware scored 34 points in 86 games and added 166 penalty minutes. In 1996-97, his final junior season, he featured in 13 games with the Leafs and was pointless in all games.

In his first full professional season in 1997-98, Ware would play 67 games in the AHL with the St. John’s Maple Leafs notching three assists and 182 penalty minutes. He played in two NHL games that same year with the Leafs and was held off the scoresheet entirely without even a single penalty minute. The following year he’d play in 55 games in St. John’s, scoring a goal and four assists for five points and added 130 penalty minutes.

On February 17th of 1999, Ware was dealt to the Florida Panthers for minor leaguer David Nemirovsky. He would play six games with the Panthers that year, registering one assist and six penalty minutes. He also played 20 games for their AHL affiliate the New Haven Beast where he scored one assist and added 26 penalty minutes.

He would go on to play three more seasons in the AHL, playing in 145 games and getting 14 points (all assists) and 360 penalty minutes. He retired in 2002 after undergoing five separate knee surgeries over the course of his career. After all was said and done, Ware played in 21 NHL games, got one assist and 12 penalty minutes.

In the picks following Ware’s selection, there were a few notable names the Leafs missed out on. They were: Martin Biron, Petr Sykora, and Brian Boucher.

#3. Tyler Biggs

The Toronto Maple Leafs traded up (more on this later) to acquire the 22nd overall pick so they could select Tyler Biggs.

Leading up to the draft he was ranked in the top-15 by TSN’s Bob McKenzie, so the pick looked like a steal at the time. However, his draft year Biggs ranked fifth in terms of points per game on the USNTDP for U-18 players. In 55 games he scored 19 goals and 12 assists for 31 points and 161 penalty minutes. As a 6-2 205lbs power forward, his main selling point was that he was a mean and tough player who had a high skill level to compliment his game.

In the following two seasons, Biggs would play in the NCAA and the OHL. In 2011-12, in 37 games with Miami University (in Ohio) he would score nine goals and eight assists for 17 points while getting penalized for 63 minutes. The next season he would take his talents to the OHL’s Oshawa Generals where he 26 goals and 27 assists for 53 points in 60 games and only hit 55 penalty minutes.

After his junior career had finished, Biggs found himself playing for the Leafs’ AHL affiliate the Toronto Marlies and briefly for their ECHL affiliate the Orlando Solar Bears. Over those two seasons, Biggs played in 104 games for the Marlies, scoring nine goals and five assists for 14 points, while racking up 95 penalty minutes. In his brief ECHL stint, he scored at a much better rate, scoring four goals and two assists for six points in eight games, with 16 minutes in penalties.

That summer, Biggs was included in the blockbuster deal that sent Phil Kessel to the Pittsburgh Penguins. He would finish out his ELC with their affiliate the Wilkes-Barre Scranton Penguins, playing in 11 games and picking up a goal and assist for two points and 11 penalty minutes. After this, he would sign minor league contracts with the Kalamazoo Wings of the ECHL, playing 126 games with 35 goals and 45 assists for 80 points 120 pims. He would also sign with the Nottingham Panthers of the EIHL, racking up nine points in 24 games in England. Without an official announcement, Biggs has now retired from professional hockey since last playing in 2018-19.

As I mentioned before, to put salt in the wound, Leafs GM Brian Burke traded up to draft Tyler Biggs. He traded the 30th overall pick (Rickard Rakell) and the 39th overall pick (John Gibson) to take him at 22nd. Some other notable players taken in the next few spots were: Philip Danault and Vladislav Namestnikov.

#2 Scott PearsonThe Toronto Maple Leafs drafted Scott Pearson with the sixth overall pick in 1988. He played with the Kingston Canadians in his draft year scoring 26 goals and 32 assists for 58 points in 46 games. Not eye-popping numbers but he eclipsed 117 penalty minutes in that season, making him a hot commodity in that era. He was a tough player who could hit and fight while still having enough skill to contribute on the scoresheet.

However, this did not fully materialize when he got to the professional level. He would get a nine game stint with the Leafs that upcoming season where he only registered one assist and two penalty minutes. After being sent back down to juniors, he would play 45 games split between the now Kingston Raiders and Niagara Falls Thunder. He would notch 35 goals and 42 assists for 77 points, while amassing 124 pims.

Over the next few seasons that followed, Pearson would find himself going up and down between the AHL and NHL and being traded to the Quebec Nordiques organization. By 1993, he would play 139 games in the NHL registering 47 points and 305 pims. Finally ahead of the 93-94 season, he would be flipped to the Edmonton Oilers for Martin Gelinas and a sixth round pick. There, he would play the best season of his career scoring 19 goals and 18 assists for 37 points and adding 165 pims in 72 games.

Unfortunately, the injuries Pearson faced over his career would start to take their toll and over the coming seasons he would miss more and more time. This lead to him once again being bounced up and down between the minors and the NHL. He finally retired in 2001 playing a total of 292 NHL games with 56 goals, 42 assists for 98 points and 615 penalty minutes.

Now, for the fun part. Unlike with Convery, it’s basically a Hall of Fame induction class picked after Pearson. Here are some players the Leafs missed out that were picked in the next four spots just after him: Martin Gelinas, Jeremy Roenick, Rod Brind’Amour, Teemu Selanne. Yikes.

TORONTO, ON – FEBRUARY 23: Stuart Percy #50 of the Toronto Maple Leafs skates against the Nashville Predators during an NHL game at the Air Canada Centre on February 23, 2016 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The Predators defeated the Maple Leafs 3-2. (Photo by Claus Andersen/Getty Images)

Honorable Mentions

Stuart Percy, D

Drafted 25th overall in 2011, Percy never stuck it in the NHL. Over his career he played 12 games with the Maple Leafs, registering three points. He’s spent the past two seasons in Europe playing for Sport Vaasa of the Liiga and HC Motor České Budêjovice in Czech Extraliga.

Drafting Percy, the Leafs missed out on: Philip Danault, Vladislav Namestnikoc, and Rickard Rakell.

Steve Bancroft, D

Bancroft was drafted 21st overall in 1989, he was undoubtedly drafted for his toughness, registering 99 penalty minutes in 66 games in his draft year. He would go on to play six NHL games between the Chicago Blackhawks and San Jose Sharks and registered one assist.

The two picks directly after Bancroft that the Leafs could have taken instead were: Adam Foote and Travis Green.

Eric Fichaud, G

The Leafs chose Fichaud with the 16th overall pick in 1994. Before playing a single game with the team, the Leafs traded him less than a year later for Benoit Hogue and a 5th rounder that never played an NHL game. Hogue did go on to have a solid NHL career and spent 56 games in a Leaf uniform before being dealt, however when you pick a goalie in the first round, you expect him to be your starter.

This wasn’t the case for Fichaud as he would go on to play 95 games over six NHL seasons, between the New York Islanders, Nashville Predators, Carolina Hurricanes, and Montreal Canadiens. In those games he had a record of 22-47-10 with a .897% save percentage.

In the picks that followed, the Leafs could have taken Wayne Primeau or went with another goalie in Mathieu Garon.

Luca Cereda, C

I had initially placed Cereda on this list but after looking into it, I decided against it due to his heart conditions. He never played an NHL game for the Leafs and retired in 2008 and is now the Head Coach of the HC Ambrì-Piotta of the NL.