With the Toronto Maple Leafs looking like a bonafide contender, expect the team to use its first-round draft pick on the best player available, instead of trying to fill a positional need, says Sportsnet’s Jeff Marek.
Toronto holds the No. 17 selection in Friday night’s NHL Draft. It’s the first time the club will be picking outside the top eight since 2013 and, considering their trajectory, could be the last time they have a selection below the 20s for a while.
“The Maple Leafs are in win-now mode,” Marek said Wednesday on The Andrew Walker Show on Sportsnet 590 The FAN. “This is a team that has arrived and is going to be in the playoffs for the foreseeable future.”
Toronto took a large step forward this past season as rookies Auston Matthews, Mitch Marner and William Nylander firmly established themselves in the league. The club turned a corner in January and pushed the Presidents’ Trophy-winning Washington Capitals to six games during a first-round playoff series it ultimately lost.
Marek says it makes sense for the Leafs to look for the best player with the No. 17 selection, as opposed to addressing a need, like defence, for instance.
“I don’t think you draft for position because you’re not going to necessarily get that player who’s going to fill a need right now,” he said. “When you start to get in that area of the draft, you’re really looking at players who are two or maybe three years out from even starting to knock at the door of an NHL career.”
One player who could be on Toronto’s radar is 5-foot-8 forward Kailer Yamamoto, who spent this past season with the Spokane Chiefs. He was ranked No. 17 among North American skaters by NHL Central Scouting.
“So much skill,” Marek said of the 18-year-old who scored 99 points in 65 games during the 2016-17 campaign. “He’s a guy who gets it done five-on-five in a big, strong Western Hockey League.”
Marek says the Spokane, Wash., native is reminiscent of current NHLers Johnny Gaudreau and Teuvo Teravainen. He also notes that Yamamoto could end up being selected by the Edmonton Oilers with No. 22 pick.
“He’s a ton of fun to watch,” said Marek. “Really creative, finds open spots, makes players around him better. But the knock on him is he’s not six-foot tall. He’s a smaller hockey player with high skill and great edges on his skates. Lot of fun to watch.”
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