It's been just several months since the Toronto Maple Leafs traded away prospect Fraser Minten in the deal to get defenseman Brandon Carlo from the Boston Bruins, but they could be regretting it after seeing him dominate in the pre-season rookie game.
Minten, who just turned 21 years old in July, is off to an incredible start to his season. The Bruins prospect pool is not very strong even with the addition of James Hagens at seventh overall last June but Minten is shining above the rest during Boston's Prospect Challenge against the New Jersey Devils over the weekend.
Everything that we appreciated about Minten during his time as a Leafs prospect was on full display: Backchecking hard, playing an incredibly smart two-way game, being hyper aware of his surroundings, and being able to set up his teammates for goals or score them himself.
Fraser Minten's ability to close on the forecheck/backcheck and eliminate plays and players was really out of place in this tourney. No wonder he was with Locmelis on PP. Mgmt only needs to evaluate his offense and plan accordingly. He belongs in the NHL now. #NHLBruins https://t.co/fXyJzKA2u6
— Mick Colageo (@MickColageo) September 14, 2025
Minten's coach for AHL Providence, Ryan Mougenel couldn't stop praising him during these rookie games as the young center prepares for the season ahead.
“He’s always in the right spots,” said Mougenel via the Boston Herald. “Like I said to the guys the other day, the fish don’t just jump into the boat when you go fishing. It’s great that you guys put the work in, but now it’s time to execute and I think he’s in a real good frame of mind for what he’s got to do going to camp. He’s been through it now. He’s got a certain presence to him now. He’s a leader. I think we’ve done a real good job recognizing the person and the player. I’m excited for him.”
Minten does have singular focus for this summer and that's to make the Bruins. He's not facing much competition as a centerman with really only Elias Lindholm and Casey Mittelstadt (and Pavel Zacha if he plays down the middle) as obvious options that should play above him in the lineup. But that still means he will have to earn it and he's well on his way to doing that.
Do the Maple Leafs already regret trading Minten?
The big question is if this brief display of dominance is causing the Toronto Maple Leafs to have some seller's remorse when it comes to the young centerman.
Sure, we can chalk this performance off as a player who actually played in the NHL and has professional experience being able to push around younger prospects during some rookie games, but Minten has all the makings of being that ultra-reliable two-way center that almost every team dreams of.
The Leafs do have someone in that mold with actual winning experience with Nicolas Roy, but could them keeping Minten around given them another option down the middle and dream of lengthening their competitive window? Maybe. Or, maybe this is just seeing Carlo be a decent top-four defenseman -- a player who is just in the right spots but isn't overly exciting -- and compare that to Bruins fans now dreaming of a world where Minten is a bona fide top-six center that brings more value than Carlo ever could from the back.
We'll just have to see how it all shakes out but Minten is at least on a trajectory that will cause the Leafs to maybe wish they hadn't traded him in the first place.