Defenders
The Toronto Maple Leafs will have eight defensemen in the prospects tournament. Fans will recognize a few of them, but there are some fresh faces.
William Villeneuve
William Villeneuve got selected by the Toronto Maple Leafs in the 4th round of the 2020 NHL draft. The 20-year-old right-shooting defenseman is 6’2, 181 Lbs. Last season he registered eight goals and 48 assists for 56 points in 64 games for the Saint John Sea Dogs. He hopes to have a good tournament and earn a spot on the Toronto Marlies.
Mikko Kokkonen
Mikko Kokkonen was drafted by Toronto in the 3rd round of the 2019 NHL draft. The 21-year-old left-shooting defenseman from Finland is 5’11 and 194 Lbs. He registered one goal and 14 assists for 15 points in 58 games for the Pelicans in Liiga.
Axel Rindell
Axel Rindell got selected by the Maple Leafs in the 6th round of the 2020 NHL draft. He is a right-shooting defenseman from Finland and is 6’0 and 176 Lbs. Last season he registered five assists in 16 games for Jukurit in Liiga and one goal and 11 assists for 12 points in 26 games with Karpat in Liiga.
Filip Kral
Filip Kral got selected by the Maple Leafs in the 5th round of the 2018 NHL draft. The 22-year-old left-shooting defenseman from Czechia is 6’2 and 194 Lbs. Last season he registered three goals and 18 assists for 21 points in 58 games for the Toronto Marlies. He is looking to improve on last season.
Tommy Miller
Tommy Miller got signed by the Toronto Marlies on March 21st, 2022, to a one-year AHL contract. Miller is a right-shooting defenseman from the USA and is 6’2 and 194 Lbs. Last season he registered one goal and eight assists for nine points in 39 games for Northeastern University of the NCAA.
Marshall Rifai
Marshall Rifai got signed by the Marlies on March 29th, 2022, to a one-year AHL contract. He is a left-shooting defenseman from Quebec, Canada, and is 6’1 and 190 Lbs. He recorded five goals and eight assists for 13 points in 35 games at Harvard University last season.
Kasper Larsen
Kasper Larsen is an invitee to the tournament. He is a left-shooting defenseman from Denmark and is 6’6 and 231 Lbs. Last season he recorded eight goals and 35 assists for 43 points in 57 games for the Mississauga Steelheads of the OHL.
Noah Van Vliet
Noah Van Vliet is an invitee to the tournament. He is a left-shooting defenseman from Toronto, Canada, and is 6’2 and 205 Lbs. Van Vliet recorded two assists in 11 games for the Hamilton Bulldogs in the OHL last season.