Team: Toronto Maple Leafs
GM: Brian Burke
First-round pick: 5
Number of picks: Six. Round 1 (5), 2 (35), 5 (126), 6 (156, 157), 7 (209).
Recent first-round picks: RW Tyler Biggs (2011, 22nd), D Stuart Percy (2011, 25th), C Nazem Kadri (2009, 7th), D Luke Schenn (2008, 5th), LW Jiri Tlusty (2006, 13th), G Tuukka Rask (2005, 21st).
Team needs: A skilled centre.
Ever since Mats Sundin left the Maple Leafs in 2008 the team has been without a topflight centre.
Mikhail Grabovski is skilled and Tyler Bozak has done an adequate job on the top line despite being more suited to a second or third-line role, but neither has solidified themselves as a No. 1 centre.
If the Leafs can add a player down the middle to accompany dynamic wingers like Phil Kessel and Joffrey Lupul it would go a long way to helping the club earn a spot in the playoffs for the first time since the NHL lockout in 2004.
More than anything, though, the Leafs need to draft a player that fans can be excited about. Schenn is a steady force on the blueline, but fans haven’t been thrilled with his production the last couple of years. Meanwhile, Kadri is still developing and the expectations surrounding Biggs and Percy aren’t extremely high. The Leafs haven’t had a first-round pick turn into a full-fledged star in over 20 years and that needs to change.
Likely first-round target: Alex Galchenyuk, C, Sarnia Sting
Some mock drafts have Galchenyuk going as high as second overall — he could also fit in well with the Montreal Canadiens who pick third — but if he’s available when the Leafs step to the podium they likely won’t hesitate in taking the skilled American, who is of Russian descent.
He only played two games last season after undergoing surgery to fix a torn ACL, but scouts speak very highly of him. In his rookie year with the Sting he recorded 31 goals and 83 points in 68 games and has tremendous offensive upside.
Other options:
Forwards Mikhail Grigorenko of the Quebec Remparts in the QMJHL, Filip Forsberg of Leksand in the Swedish league’s second division, or Radek Faksa of the Kitchener Rangers in the OHL are also viable options for the Maple Leafs.
If the team trades down or decides to go off the board, Burke could potentially target defencemen Matthew Dumba of the Red Deer Rebels or even Olli Maatta of the London Knights.
Great moments in draft history:
In recent years the Maple Leafs haven’t had too much to brag about when it comes to their draft history. Remember that doozy of a draft day deal that sent Tuukka Rask to the Boston Bruins in exchange for fellow goalie Andrew Raycroft? Exactly.
However, the team has been able to find some gems on defence in the later round of the draft.
The best of them all was Tomas Kaberle, picked 204th in 1996. The team’s longtime powerplay quarterback became a four-time NHL all-star and registered 520 points with the Leafs.
In 2002, the team took Ian White with the 191st pick and although the Leafs traded him away as part of the deal that brought in Dion Phaneuf, White could crack the roster on just about any team in the NHL and spent last season with the Detroit Red Wings putting up solid numbers.
In 2007, the Leafs selected Carl Gunnarsson 194th overall. The Swede has turned into a solid blueliner and is currently holding down a spot on the Leafs’ defensive core.
A steal at No. 5: One would think that any player selected in the Top 5 would end up being a quality asset, but the No. 5 pick has been hit and miss in the past. Past fifth-overall selections Phil Kessel, Carey Price and Thomas Vanek have all turned out to be stars, where players like Stanislav Chistov and Vitaly Vishnevsky did not.
The best fifth-overall draft selection in NHL history came in 1990 when the Pittsburgh Penguins selected Jaromir Jagr. The Czech superstar went on to become one of the most prolific scorers and dynamic talents the sport has seen. Jagr, who is a shoe in for the Hockey Hall of Fame once he steps away from the game, currently ranks eighth all-time in regular season points with 1,653 — the most of any active player — and is just 80 points behind his former teammate Mario Lemieux.
Sportsnet says: “Whether by drafting or by trading, Brian Burke’s mission at the NHL Entry Draft this week must be to get a player that can make an immediate impact next season.
When your team hasn’t made the playoffs for seven seasons, it can be no other way and the fact the Leafs are slated to pick fifth suggests the only way Burke can accomplish his goal is to trade up to get the first or second overall pick or trade his team’s pick for an established player.
Burke has done a nice job in the past few years of stocking his organization with good prospects, but only making the playoffs will save his job moving forward. Look for the veteran executive to make quite a splash in Pittsburgh.” — Mike Brophy
“It may be Brian Burke’s most important draft as Leafs GM. But it doesn’t look like whoever Burke picks at five (if the Leafs remain there) will be in Toronto’s lineup next season. Scouts tell me there aren’t that many players who can step right into the NHL. So quite simply put, Burke may be heading into the draft looking to build the Leafs for the future (a future he may not be part of).
Of course he could use this week, and the lead up to the draft, to make a couple of major moves that may hurt the future of the team, but could make an impact on the now: picking up Rick Nash and/or Roberto Luongo. If he somehow gets one or both of them, the Leafs will likely have to part with that fifth-overall pick.
If he keeps the pick, or manages to move up, it will be for a forward. A forward who would be a top-six player in the Leafs’ plans going forward.” — Tony Ambrogio.
