Mock NHL Entry Draft: Toronto Maple Leafs Draft 23rd

The Toronto Maple Leafs hold the 23rd pick in the upcoming NHL Entry Draft, which begins Friday night and concludes with rounds 2-7 on Saturday.

Last year the Toronto Maple Leafs traded their pick, but acquired a pick from the Washington Capitals which they then used to select Easton Cowan with the 28th selection.

As of this writing, the Leafs still have their pick though they are rumoured to have offered it to Calgary last week in an attempt to get Jacob Markstrom.

The attempted trade did not materialize and the Leafs are presumably still looking for a goalie, and presumably their first round pick is still in play.

Be that as it may, the Leafs really should use the selection if they can because they don't have a very good group of prospects and nailing this pick would be extremely benificial.

With that in mind, they may still not have any choice. The team has needs and those needs (goalender, multiple defensemen) are better addressed through trade than free-agency and the Leafs draft pick is one of their best assets.

Though they have already traded next year's pick, in last year's Jake McCabe trade, the Leafs are in win-now mode because Auston Matthews and Mitch Marner are in their primes.

As for the rest of the NHL, the number-one pick belongs to the San Jose Sharks who have not picked this high since they took Patrick Marleau.

The number two pick belongs to the Blackhawks who had the top pick last year.

As with every year I will be hoping that the Toronto Maple Leafs move into the top five with a surprise tarde, but that seems unlikely.

Here is our mock draft, with the caveat that I don't know a ton about these players. I did my research and tried to have a little fun. Much of my information comes from eliteprospects.com as well as the profiles that Austin Kelly wrote up for the site.

Mock NHL Entry Draft: Toronto Maple Leafs Draft 23rd

1. Macklin Celebrini San Jose Sharks

This is the only pick I know I will get right! The Sharks are drafting a really good player here who, even though he isn't projected to be on the level of an Auston Matthews or Connor McDavid, should be at least as good as a Jack Hughes-type top pick.

2. Anton Silayev Chicago Blackhawks

Many mock drafts have Silayev much lower, but I am basing this total guess on the fact that NHL teams love big defenseman and this is the biggest one to come into the league since Zdeno Chara.

Silayev is 6'7 and an absolute beast. He has aleady played a full season in the KHL and would be an awesome player to pair with Connor Bedard in the Blackhawks rebuild.

3. Ivan Demidov Anaheim Mighty Ducks

Most people seem to expect the Russian forward to go second to Chicago, but I don't see how anyone not getting Celebrini can pass on the 6'7 defenseman, so I predict Demidov will end up in Anaheim where he will get to play with Leo Carlson and Mason McTavish.

The Ducks are starting to look superb and should be a very exciting team to follow in the near future.

4. Artyom Levshunov. Columbus Blue Jackets

A talented defenseman who can shoot and skate, the Belurissian is one of many great defenseman in this draft. The Blue Jackets are a team that needs everything, but Levshunov and Adam Fantini will make an amazing foundation going forward.

As an aside (because this is a Leafs site) perhaps drafting Levshunov could make Zach Werenski available, and that is a player the Toronto Maple Leafs should definitely have interest in.

5. Zayne Parekh Montreal Canadiens

Another defenseman, this time from Canada, Perekh is an offensive player who projects to be a top pairing superstar.

The consensus seems to be that he will be drafted slightly lower, but I predict the Canadiens will jump at the chance to add a potential puck-moving star defender to their roster.

6. Cayden Lindstrom Utah Hockey Club

This 6'3 centre could go as high as three, leaving all the defenseman to teams who didn't think they'd get a chance at them. If he falls to Utah at 6 I think they would be estatic. This is a very good draft.

7. Tig Iginla Ottawa Senators

The son of Jerome Igninla, Tig is expected to go in the top ten with Craig Button having him as high as 5th to Montreal.

It's always exciting when the son of a legend makes the NHL, and though there is always the possibility that gets the player in question overrated, this doesn't appear to be the case.

An Iginla / Tkachuk combo is something that could be awesome for the Senators.

8. Beckett Sennecke Seatle Kraken

Sennecke is from Toronto and is an excellent play-making right winger who sounds a little bit like Mitch Marner, who, it's worth mentioning, the Toronto Maple Leafs should not be trying to trade.

9. Jett Luchanko Calgary Flames

A speedy, if somewhat undersized, centre who has star potential and an awesome name. Ninth overall might be a big high for him, but I think someone will go off the board to draft a player that has been called a "puck retrieval machine."

10. Sam Dickinson New Jersey Devils

This 6'3 200 LBS defenseman rounds out the top-ten and gives the Devils yet another excellent defensive prospect. The two-way defender could possibly go higher than ten and appears to be a much better player than teams could normally expect in this draft spot.

11. Cale Eiserman Buffalo Sabres

An American winger who can shoot and plays a physical game. If he falls to Detroit he will have to change the spelling of his name, but I think he'll go 11th to the Sabres.

12. Berkly Catton Philedelphia Flyers

Said to be an all-round player, Catton is a forward from Saskatoon who has been ranked as high as fifth, which just goes to show you how deep this draft is.

The Flyers would likely be incredibly happy if he was to actually fall to them.

13. Yegor Surin Minnesota Wild

He's expected to go much lower, but I love how he was described as "fearless" and a player who goes full speed all the time (I'm paraphrasing from his elite prospects scouting report).

14. LIam Greentree San Jose Sharks

The Canadian winger played this past season in the OHL and is a player I am hoping falls to the Leafs at 23, but I just don't think it's going to happen.

Seen as a player who might have gone higher if he'd been on a better team, Greentree is a power-forward who projects as a future captain.

15. Zeev Buium Detroit Red Wings

This American defenseman has the coolest name in the draft and is expected to be a top ten pick. There is always a palyer who falls, and I arbitrarily guessed it would be Buium. If Detoit gets him, at least they'll finally be able to stop playing Moritz Seider with Ben Chiarot.

16. Carter Yakemchuck St. Louis Blues

Another massive defenseman in a draft that seems to be littered with them. I was just reading this week how bad St Louis' blue-line is, so this is a fitting pick.

17. Terik Parascak Washington Capitals

A cerebral player from Lethbridge, Alberta, Parascak is a potential sniping winger who can also set up plays. Perhaps not guaranteed to make it, but he does seem to have a very high ceiling. This is another player I'd be quite happy to see fall to the Leafs.

18. Michael Brandsegg-Nygard Chicago Blackhawks

A big hitting forward who crushes everything in his path. At 6'1, 210 and only 18 years old, Brandsegg-Nygard could be a future Tom Wilson or perhaps even better.

19. Marek Vanacker Las Vegas Golden Knights

A smallish, cerebral winger who is exactly the kind of player that NHL teams regularly pass over for larger players.

He's a solid two-way player who had an excellent year scoring 36 goals for the Brantford Bulldogs of the OHL.

20. Sacha Boisvert New York Islanders

A centre who is profiled as a goal scorer who can pass and has power-forward tendencies. He's a Canadian who played the past year at the university of North Dakota.

21. Stian Solberg Los Angels Kings

A big defender who is known for his punishing hits and his meaness. Described as the meanest player in the draft, Solberg may not score enough at the NHL level to be a star, but he's definitely an intriguing pick with a very high ceiling.

22. Michael Hage Nashville Predators

An offensive two-way centre who scored 34 goals in 54 games in the USHL this past season.

23. Konsta Helenius Toronto Maple Leafs

Finally we have the Leafs picking at 23, and though I am almost completely just guessing at this point, I have the Leafs taking Konsta Helenius who hails from Finland.

This Nordic winger is only 5'11 and has the intelligence that the Leafs seem to really like in their prospects.

He is expected to go much higher, but his ability to score and play a solid defensive game make him an interesting propsect who would be a grand slam at 23.

He's smart, creative, and an all-round player. It is said that his lack of a dynamic specific skill (great skaing, hard shot) hurts his chances of being drafted high, but he's almost certain to make the NHL.

With all the defenseman available and all the good players, there's a decent chance he drops though it is probably wishful thinking to imagine he drops to the Leafs.

24. Trevor Connelly Columbus Blue Jackets

A big American forward with lots of skill who tore up the USHL this past season.

25. Adam Jiricek Boston Bruins

This defenseman was originally seen as a top ten pick this year but he has dropped down quite a bit. It seems to be that he dropped due to injury, so if he fully recovers then whoever gets him will likely be getting quite a bit better player than they would have expected in their draft slot.