8. Roni Hirvonen
Age: 22
Height/Weight: 5'10",178 LBS.
Position: Centre
Shoots: Left
Draft: 2nd Round, 59th Overall 2021
With five points in his first seven games this year with the Marlies, and the Toronto Maple Leafs as thin as any team in the NHL, I wouldn't be surprised to see Hirvonen in the NHL sooner than later.
He is a very interesting player, in that he's smart, he's talented, and he's small. If he was larger, he'd already be in the NHL, but with this player, I am not sure it matters. He's tough, he's crazy, and everyone who has ever worked with him just raves about his dedication, intelligence, toughness, endurance, etc.
He is physical, he can defend, and he can score a bit. His skating is strong and he is extremely intelligent. If not for a near career ending eye injury last year, he likely would have been more of a candidate to make the team out of camp.
Right now Max Domi is playing centre for the Leafs, and that's good news for the future of Roni Hirnovnen's chances of playing in the NHL this year, even though as far as I can tell, he's mostly been used as a winger over the last couple of seasons.
Like many players from the Leafs previous regime, Hirvonen might not get a chance with the new size-obsessed Toronto Maple Leafs. It will be interesting to see if he gets the call this year or not. I bet that he does.