Top prospect ‘looking forward’ to playing with Maple Leafs

If there’s one potential silver lining this season for the Toronto Maple Leafs, it’s the possibility of earning a top-five draft pick in one of the deepest drafts in recent memory.

If that’s the case, the Maple Leafs could land a generational talent. While many pundits have their eyes set on Penn State star Gavin McKenna, there’s another stud prospect waiting in the wings.

That’s defenseman Keaton Verhoeff. The 17-year-old has been a standout at the University of North Dakota in the NCAA. He’s got the size at 6’4” and 212 pounds. He can skate, shoot, and well, could be just the type of defenseman the Maple Leafs need to build around.

And Verhoeff knows it.

In a conversation with Jay Rosehill, Verhoeff admitted he’s looking forward to the possibility of playing for the Toronto Maple Leafs.

“Every single fan in Toronto loves sports, loves hockey. I think it’s a spot where they want to win, and they want players that want to win as well. I think maybe being able to go into Toronto and maybe have that chance to be a guy that can help build a team around, build that next wave of players, and the next wave of the team, to becoming a winning organization the next couple of years is something I look forward to.”

That sounds like a guy who’s excited about the idea of playing in Toronto. A defenseman with his caliber, a right-shot to boot, would instantly become the Leafs’ number-one blueliner.

It’s a tantalizing idea Leafs fans may want to keep in mind.

Maple Leafs would need to land top-three pick to land Verhoeff

As it stands, the Maple Leafs are slotted to pick seventh in the first-round. In that case, the pick would go to the Boston Bruins. But assuming the NHL Draft Lottery does the Leafs a solid, they could get their pick back by moving into the top five. But that won’t be good enough to get Verhoeff.

The Leafs would need a top-three pick to land the future star.

According to Tankathon’s mock draft, Verhoeff could go third overall. The Vancouver Canucks would take McKenna first, with the Calgary Flames landing Ivar Stenberg out of Sweden with the second pick.

Both players make sense for each team. The Canucks and Flames need superstar forwards. And they don’t really need stud blueliners. The Canucks have Zeev Buium, while the Flames have Zayne Parekh.

That leaves the Chicago Blackhawks getting Keaton Verhoeff at #3. That’s where the Maple Leafs would need to be. Anywhere in the top three would be good enough to land Verhoeff. And given his apparent enthusiasm about landing in Toronto, it seems like a win-win for both sides.

The remainder of this season will be fascinating. The Leafs’ controlled tank ought to get them as close to the top five as possible. But it could come down to a simple twist of fate that might result in Verhoeff becoming a Maple Leaf.