A Player for the Toronto Maple Leafs to Target at the Draft

With just three Toronto Maple Leafs picks in the draft, they must choose wisely. Luckily, there is hidden gem that should be available in the middle rounds.

The Toronto Maple Leafs didn’t take advantage of the talent they’ve collected this past season and fell short of their goal once again. As they retool, the organization needs to first focus on the upcoming NHL Entry Daft.

The  Leafs have just three picks in the draft. According to CapFriendly, Toronto owns a first, a third, and a seventh round selection. While there is a number of impressive players available in this cohort that the Leafs should look for in the first round, there is one player they should focus on in the third.

General Manager Kyle Dubas and the Leafs should take Vasili Atanasov (Also spelled Vasily Atanasov) off the board should they have that opportunity. He could be the steal of the draft. That’s because, after he was passed over by every NHL club last year, he has proven that he shouldn’t have been overlooked. (stats from eliteprospects.com).

Toronto Maple Leafs and the 2022 NHL Entry Draft

Atanasov is a 5’10”, 148 lbs center playing in Russia for Mamonty Yugry. He isn’t ever going to be the biggest player on the ice but he may easily score the most goals.

In fact, Atanasov was tied for the fourth leading point producer in the MHL this year. He had 39 goals in just 54 games, to go along with 28 assists. The 19-year-old scored at a rate of 0.72 goals per game and had his name on the score sheet at a rate of 1.24 points per game. The production should excite scouts, especially after taking such a giant step forward in his development.

A strong comparison in terms of production for Maple Leafs fans is Ilya Mikheyev. He too played in the MHL at age 19. With Omskie Yastreby in 2013-14, he recorded five fewer goals and a total of four more points than Atanasov. In 56 games, Mikheyev registered 34 goals and 37 assists for a total of 71 points.

Just as Mikheyev did when he turned 21 (Atanasov will be 20), Atanasov is expected to play in Russia’s top league next season, the KHL. He will be centering a line for Torpedo Nizhny Novgorod, who finished 16th this year (out of 22), and failed to make the playoffs. That should give Atanasov plenty of opportunity and ice time, exactly what he needs to continue the upwards trajectory in his development.

While teams will look at Atanasov’s size with concern, the Toronto Maple Leafs should look at what he’s able to do on the ice. The center has a strong two-way game led by his dynamic skating ability and motor. He is a speedster who can be a real pest on the ice, beating opponents to pucks in the corners and getting back in time to force opponents to make mistakes. Most importantly, the Maple Leafs should fall in love Atanasov because of his ability to put pucks past goaltenders.

Prior to last year’s draft Corey Pronman from The Athletic rated him the 112th best prospect. He wrote:

Atanasov’s game has a lot of speed and energy. He has a quick-twitch skating stride that allows him to transition pucks up ice well. He’s hard on pucks, forcing a lot of turnovers with his effort and skating, and is a good two-way forward. He makes plays through defenders with his puck skills consistently and does so on the move. He has some playmaking ability, but the question on Atanasov is how much offense is in his game, particularly for an undersized forward, as he didn’t score that much for his age in the MHL. In a sentence, Atanasov has a chance at the NHL due to his speed and work ethic with some skill, but given his size and lack of great production he may not make it.

Going into the 2022 draft, the question about Atanasov’s offense has been answered in a big way. That’s likely why NHL Central Scouting has him ranked as the 62nd best skater out of Europe after not even having him ranked at midterm.

With the few picks the Leafs have in this year’s draft, it becomes incredibly important for them to find the right selections. In the third round, Atanasov should be just that.