Toronto Maple Leafs 2017 NHL Draft Retrospective

First Pick

At 17th overall, the Leafs were able to nab Swedish right-handed defenseman Timothy Liljegren. Heading into the year, Liljegren was a projected top-five pick but due to a bout with Mononucleosis causing him to miss much of the year, he fell down rankings.

Labelled as a mobile offensive-defenseman and with already two seasons in the SHL under his belt, Leafs nation felt that they had gotten a major steal. 

Liljegren joined the Toronto Marlies immediately, spending the majority of the next four years there. The long time he spent in the Leafs system caused people to lose faith in the blueliner who was only 22-years-old. He had already been surpassed by players on the depth chart, like Rasmus Sandin and many felt he would either never break through or he would not live up to expectations. 

The bust label was quickly ripped off after Liljegren made the Leafs on a full-time basis in 2021-22. He showcased his offensive upside scoring 23 points in only 61 games playing mainly third-pair minutes and limited special teams.

Since then, he has seen consistent upticks in his usage, now averaging nearly 20 minutes a night and proving capable of playing both powerplay and penalty kill. Unless massive changes are made to the Leafs blueline, Liljegren should be good to continue his role playing second pairing minutes. 

Seven years out, this looks like a good pick by the Leafs. There are of course better players who were taken in the picks that followed but it’s hard to knock a 2nd pair right-handed defenseman who is closing in on 200 games played so far.