Toronto Maple Leafs: 3 Top Prospects That Could Soon See Action

In recent weeks, the Toronto Maple Leafs have been hit with a slew of injuries, in particular both on the blue-line and in the net, putting their last lines of defense in a bind.

Throughout the past, the Toronto Maple Leafs have emphasized the importance of having strong organizational depth to help alleviate any potential stress situations generated from the injury front. Well, that depth is currently being tested to the max for the past few weeks and counting for the Leafs.

Among the first wave of reinforcements, the Leafs have relied on the steady presence of veteran players who have already had ample experience in the NHL to accommodate seamlessly with such situations.

They included William Lagesson, Simon Benoit and Martin Jones. All three have done a somewhat decent job so far to keep the team afloat, but nothing that would move the needle much in terms of making them even better.

If the Leafs encounter anymore injury issues, more than likely they will need to start dipping into their prospect pool to help replace their fallen comrade. In such instances, which of the Leafs  prospects will most likely get the call?

Here, we take a look at 3 key top prospects that could finally see their first action with the Leafs this season between now and the end of the year.

The difference between these candidates and the veteran call-ups already in place is the fact that these 3 prospects could potentially have a bigger impact on the game for the blue and white while possibly even becoming a difference maker for the team.

Toronto Maple Leafs: 3 Top Prospects That Could Soon See Action

Forward Alex Steeves

Alex Steeves was signed by the Toronto Maple Leafs as an unrestricted free agent back in March of 2021 after spending three years in college with Notre Dame.

Despite putting together solid seasons in the AHL with the Toronto Marlies the past two years with 46 and 51-point seasons, Steeves has failed to catch on with the big club as of yet. Over the same time interval, he has made only cameo appearances up until now.

In six career NHL games with the Leafs, Steeves has registered just one assist with five shots on goal while averaging just a little under eight minutes of ice time per game.

However, he appears to be doing everything he can this season with the Marlies to vouch for his promotion to the big league team with his strong play to date. In 16 games, Steeves has led the team with 11 goals and 9 assists for 20 points, scoring at greater than a point-a-game pace in helping the Marlies keep pace with their competitors in battling for a playoff spot.

Steeves was already called up once earlier this season, but never ended up dressing for a game before being sent back down again.

Having filled out his frame and upgraded his defensive play while developing with the Marlies the past few seasons, Steeves is still looking for that distinct opportunity to finally move up a level and permanently stick with the Leafs for the long run.

He would be an ideal bottom-six forward for the Leafs that could play either at center or on the wing, while providing both strong defensive two-way play, together with chipping in with some offensive output at the same time.

Defenseman Topi Niemela

After the graduations of both Nick Robertson and Matthew Knies to the NHL, Leafs’ top defensive prospect Topi Niemela became the unanimous top prospect of the organization across many sources. After all, the former Leafs third round pick from the 2020 NHL Entry Draft have taken huge strides in terms of his growth and development in both his offensive and defensive game over the past couple of seasons.

After spending the majority of his time with Karpat in the Finnish League, Niemela finally made his move over to North America this season to begin his first full season with the Marlies. So far, he has not disappointed, as he has tallied three goals and 10 assists for 13 points so far in 19 games played.

He leads all Marlies’ defenseman in those respective categories, while ranking within the top 20 in the league for both assists and points for defenseman.

Although he has mainly seen his playing time at even strength and on the power play, he will likely get his chance eventually to hone his skills with more time on the penalty kill to fully develop into an all-situations defenseman for the future.

With the Leafs defensive depth significantly depleted in recent times with injuries to Mark Giordano and Timothy Liljegren, along with the season-ending injury to John Klingberg, Niemela could suddenly find himself in the mix to get a potential call-up in the not-so-distant future.

Once he does get his chance, hopefully he can help make everyone forget about the loss of Rasmus Sandin from last season at the trade deadline by providing the much-needed youthful boost to the Leafs everyday defensive lineup.