Toronto Maple Leafs 2017 NHL Draft Retrospective

Fourth Pick

At 124th overall, the Leafs chose another overage Russian forward, Vladislav Kara.

It was a strange pick at the time as his numbers did not pop off the page, even as an overager and he was unranked on many major draft boards.

Regardless, he had decent size at 6-2 and 187lbs, played a more powerforward game and had a good shot.

He also had utility as both a center and wing. The lack of information coupled with this made him an interesting prospect in the Leafs system.

In 2018, he made his KHL debut and one year after being drafted he flew to Toronto to attend Leafs development camp.

After that, there was little connection between Kara and the team. Since then, he has been able to grind his way up from a KHL/VHL tweener to a full-time KHL player the past couple seasons.

Of course now at 26 years old, it is very unlikely that Kara ever plays a game in North America let alone donning the blue and white.

This was another wasted pick during a time when the Leafs really could have used a win or two in the draft.