Top 3 Toronto Maple Leafs World Junior Performances Of All Time
By Gordon Munro
Top 3 Toronto Maple Leafs World Junior Performances Of All Time
3. Russ Courtnall
Following the 1982-83 season, Russ Courtnall was drafted seventh overall by the Toronto Maple Leafs.
The next calendar year would be exciting for the hot young Leafs prospect. Not only would he make his NHL debut but he would return to his junior team, the Victoria Cougars where he would torch the Western Hockey League (WHL). As well, he would represent Canada at the olympics and of course, the World Junior Hockey Championships.
As captain of team Canada at the 1984 World Junior Championships, Courtnall would lead with his performance. He would score seven goals and six assists for 13 points in seven games.
Although Canada would only finish fifth in the tournament, it was not at all because of Courtnall’s efforts. He was the top Canadian scorer and was tied for fourth overall in scoring.
Following this, he would go on to have a very respectable NHL career, playing for the Toronto Maple Leafs, Montreal Canadiens, Minnesota North Stars, Dallas Stars, Vancouver Canucks, New York Rangers, and Los Angeles Kings. Over 16 seasons, he would play in 1,029 games scoring 297 goals and 447 assists for 744 points. (stats nhl.com some info wikipedia.com).