OT: Rank Maple Leafs Top 10 prospect pre-draft

[JMilne*]

1. 2015 1st Round Pick
2. Nylander
3. Brown
4. Percy
5. Leipsic
6. Johnson
7. Verhaghe
8. Valiev
9. Gauthier
10. Leivo
11. Loov

Agreed with this one

 

[Mess]

I'm curious to when this ranking was compiled, does anyone know when the ranking was compiled?

Well considering that Morrison ranked Leipsic #4 and he was acquired in the Franson/Santorelli TD deal its not old. The magazine was released in late March so its about a month old.

However in terms of organizational rankings that is considered current.

 

[johnny_rudeboy]

1. 2015 1st Round Pick
2. Nylander
3. Brown
4. Percy
5. Leipsic
6. Johnson
7. Verhaghe
8. Valiev
9. Gauthier
10. Leivo
11. Loov

Looks good to me even do I perhaps would put Nylander ahead of our 1st-15. Possibly also change Brown and Percy. Best would perhaps be to have 1st-15 and Nylander tied for 1st and Brown and Percy tied for 3rd.

 

[deletethis]

Nylander
Brown
Leipsic
Loov
Johnson
Verhaeghe
Carrick
Valiev
Gauthier
Rupert

 

[leafsrock67]

1. Nylander
2. Johnson
3. Leipisic
4. Brown
5. Leivo
6. Gauthier
7. Verhaege
8. Percy
9. Loov
10. Valiev

 

[ChrisCall]

Some of the prospects are very hard to watch (for most any one here...)
But going on Marlies + odds and ends...
-----------------

#1 - Nylander
Seems to be a consensus at this point. Kid is not only a great pick but by the looks of it, could be a star one day. Is it fair to say he is performing better than most people would have imagined?

#2 - Connor Brown
It is still tough i think to consider the mindset that a 6th rounder could be this high on a prospect list, but once those preconceptions are shaken off, it probably does make a lot of sense. He might not be a 40 goal scorer in the NHL, but the sheer determination factor. This is a kid you just know he is going to make it because he refuses to quit on anything. He is the most sure thing out of the whole group. He is a winner. He is a player you win with. He'll be a very big part of the leafs future, most likely on the 2nd line.

#3 - Victor Loov
This might seem a bit high to some people but consider the package here. A big, strong, smart defender with physicality. Grit. Good character. Smart plays, smart stride. He is bound for the NHL. There's a reason the headline read 'Great talent departs for NA'. The 'X' factor here is scoring. He surprised this year by posting 21 points. He was supposed to be an excellent shut down stay at home guy in the #5 slot. It is pretty clear he has an NHL future and will be a big part of a winning Leafs team in the future. It's just a question of 'HOW BIG'. If his scoring game develops then he is a big, smart, physical 2nd pairing guy, instead of 3rd. Maybe he belongs a bit lower on this list because that top end potential is uncertain, but with bottom potential as a top end quality #5, it's hard to place him anywhere else.

#4 - Stuart Percy
He had a tough year, and another tough year next year might see him plummet on this list, but that has not happened yet. Injuries may have set him back but he is 21 going on 22. He has a complete package of solid tools. I feel like there are other players i could put here that are more 'Certain', but Percy can't just suddenly be ignored. There's a reason that the american broadcaster at the start of the season was looking at this guy and said 'The Leafs have a real prospect in this kid'. If he gets it together he will be a big part of the future in a couple years.

#5 - Brendan Leipsic
It's tough to argue with the determination factor. He's among the rookie scoring leaders for similar reasons to Brown. Just a whole lot of willpower. Part of me wants to be tentative on this choice, but the play speaks for itself. This guy is exactly what the Leafs were in dire need of this year. Again, not as certain of his NHL future (as with percy) as i am of the top-3, but he is a quality prospect.

#6 - Sam Carrick
I honestly wanted to put Carrick at #4, but i knew i had to keep my emotions in check. He's not a stud. He's just the kind of player that would be a shoe in for Captain if he scored more goals. He is, frankly, the Dave Bolland of the Blackhawks the year they won the cup, except we aren't stuck having him ask 5 mil a year on a long term deal. We have him during his Blackhawk years. He's good on draws. Well above average defensively. He is going to play in the NHL if there is any justice, and he will help the team win games. He'll score between 10 and 20 goals a year if given 3rd line minutes during his prime. It's that simple.

#7 - Andreas Johnson
Still a big question of what he will bring in transition to the NA game, but the facts cannot be denied. He won rookie of the year over a highly touted 1st round pick. People who know what they are doing better than us said Andreas is better than a player who put up 20 points as a rookie this year in Columbus. Our Swede posters here on the boards came in and told us how much stronger and faster he looked this year. All accounts are he is progressing very well. The video also speaks for itself. This guy has high end skill. By no means a sure thing but loom at the facts. If his game translates he is a top-6.

#8 - Freddy the Gauthier
Not ready to give up on this guy yet. People love to call him a bust. People love to crap on the pick because you don't take players like him in round #1. Fine, but you know what? He's a 6 and a half foot giant of a center with universally heralded defensive skill. At worst this is a player you get for the million dollar bargain bin as a 27 year old free agent and then he turns out to be one of the most valuable players on the team, despite low scoring ability, and the fans love him. He wins you games. Then people ask, damn, i wish we had him for those few years before when he won the cup with that other team. Well, there's only one way to do that. This guy wasn't going to be on the board in the 2nd round. Take the pick for what it is. If he ever found a way to post 60 points in the NHL he would be as highly touted as Kopitar. Even if/when he doesn't, he's a winner.

#9 - Josh Leivo
I wasn't sure if i should put him here, and yet, it seems almost more silly not to. Just last year management thought of this kid as a future top-6. A lot of the fans seemed to believe it too. Sure, he didn't put up the big numbers we might have wanted. Sure, that nasty little word called consistency is a factor and that's a big concern, but it is just too soon and hasty to forget that he has real ability. In the vein of Percy, another off year will see his stock plummet, but that should not be the case now.

#10 - The goalies
Gibson, Bibeau, and Sparks. All have looked pretty excellent at times. All are young. Trouble with goalies is they take longer and we don't need another Rask incident. Still, chances are pretty good that one of these three at minimum becomes a quality future backup. Right now they are the foundation of a young AHL squad. Even if they don't pan out they are important to the development of all the kids. Got to count on the wisdom of the new management team to make sure that the 'right' choice is made about who to keep out of this bunch long term.

----------
Why no this guy?
Finn, Toninato, Nilsson, Valiev, Rupert, CV etc etc etc...
Tough choices. Someone has to go in, and someone has to go out. Finn COULD stil turn into a top pairing D. Toninato COULD still be a top-6 of the future. Nilsson did make rookie of the year runnerup along with Wennberg. At the end of the day, hopefully some of these guys force their way onto my list. For now, i had to prioritize certainty a little bit over hopefulness in my list. Also, the 'X' factor so to speak. Does the player win you games? In the case of a guy like Carrick, it is well established that he does.

 

[jcfogerty]

Writing an article for alongtheboards and want a general consensus of what people believe are the Leafs 10 best prospects.

Here are mine:

1. Nylander
2. Brown
3. Leipsic
4. Leivo
5. Johnson
6. Percy
7. Gauthier
8. Soshnikov
9. Bibeau
10. Finn


Thanks for your insight.

You know what's beauty about this list? Leipsic is top five in a good list of prospects.
We got him, and a first for two guys who can't crack Nashvilles lineup some nights.
NONIS for G.M.

 

[Mitchy]

What happened to Finn? He's barely on any of these lists. Has he regressed that much?

 

[Shwaguy*]

High end Prospects - Nylander, 2015 Pick, Brown, Nashville pick, Gauthier (Idk why but I have a gut feeling with this guy, I could honestly see him being that dude who surprises everyone out of camp and makes the team that no one expects.)

 

[Shwaguy*]

At this point is Nylander a better prospect than Rielly was?

 

[Ramboshaw]

1: William Nylander
2: Connor Brown
3: Andreas Johnson
4: Stuart Percy
5: Brendan Leipsic
6: Josh Leivo
7: Viktor Loov
8: Carter Verhaghie
9: Frederik Gauthier
10: Dominic T.

 

[mcleex]

1) Tyler Biggs
2) Sondre Olden
3) Jamie Devane
4) David Broll
5) Brad Ross
6) Greg McKegg
7) Greg Pateryn
8) Juraj Mikus
9) Matt Finn
10) Frederik Gauthier

Lol some horrible drafting

 

[William Hylander]

Some of the prospects are very hard to watch (for most any one here...)
But going on Marlies + odds and ends...
-----------------

#1 - Nylander
Seems to be a consensus at this point. Kid is not only a great pick but by the looks of it, could be a star one day. Is it fair to say he is performing better than most people would have imagined?

#2 - Connor Brown
It is still tough i think to consider the mindset that a 6th rounder could be this high on a prospect list, but once those preconceptions are shaken off, it probably does make a lot of sense. He might not be a 40 goal scorer in the NHL, but the sheer determination factor. This is a kid you just know he is going to make it because he refuses to quit on anything. He is the most sure thing out of the whole group. He is a winner. He is a player you win with. He'll be a very big part of the leafs future, most likely on the 2nd line.

#3 - Victor Loov
This might seem a bit high to some people but consider the package here. A big, strong, smart defender with physicality. Grit. Good character. Smart plays, smart stride. He is bound for the NHL. There's a reason the headline read 'Great talent departs for NA'. The 'X' factor here is scoring. He surprised this year by posting 21 points. He was supposed to be an excellent shut down stay at home guy in the #5 slot. It is pretty clear he has an NHL future and will be a big part of a winning Leafs team in the future. It's just a question of 'HOW BIG'. If his scoring game develops then he is a big, smart, physical 2nd pairing guy, instead of 3rd. Maybe he belongs a bit lower on this list because that top end potential is uncertain, but with bottom potential as a top end quality #5, it's hard to place him anywhere else.

#4 - Stuart Percy
He had a tough year, and another tough year next year might see him plummet on this list, but that has not happened yet. Injuries may have set him back but he is 21 going on 22. He has a complete package of solid tools. I feel like there are other players i could put here that are more 'Certain', but Percy can't just suddenly be ignored. There's a reason that the american broadcaster at the start of the season was looking at this guy and said 'The Leafs have a real prospect in this kid'. If he gets it together he will be a big part of the future in a couple years.

#5 - Brendan Leipsic
It's tough to argue with the determination factor. He's among the rookie scoring leaders for similar reasons to Brown. Just a whole lot of willpower. Part of me wants to be tentative on this choice, but the play speaks for itself. This guy is exactly what the Leafs were in dire need of this year. Again, not as certain of his NHL future (as with percy) as i am of the top-3, but he is a quality prospect.

#6 - Sam Carrick
I honestly wanted to put Carrick at #4, but i knew i had to keep my emotions in check. He's not a stud. He's just the kind of player that would be a shoe in for Captain if he scored more goals. He is, frankly, the Dave Bolland of the Blackhawks the year they won the cup, except we aren't stuck having him ask 5 mil a year on a long term deal. We have him during his Blackhawk years. He's good on draws. Well above average defensively. He is going to play in the NHL if there is any justice, and he will help the team win games. He'll score between 10 and 20 goals a year if given 3rd line minutes during his prime. It's that simple.

#7 - Andreas Johnson
Still a big question of what he will bring in transition to the NA game, but the facts cannot be denied. He won rookie of the year over a highly touted 1st round pick. People who know what they are doing better than us said Andreas is better than a player who put up 20 points as a rookie this year in Columbus. Our Swede posters here on the boards came in and told us how much stronger and faster he looked this year. All accounts are he is progressing very well. The video also speaks for itself. This guy has high end skill. By no means a sure thing but loom at the facts. If his game translates he is a top-6.

#8 - Freddy the Gauthier
Not ready to give up on this guy yet. People love to call him a bust. People love to crap on the pick because you don't take players like him in round #1. Fine, but you know what? He's a 6 and a half foot giant of a center with universally heralded defensive skill. At worst this is a player you get for the million dollar bargain bin as a 27 year old free agent and then he turns out to be one of the most valuable players on the team, despite low scoring ability, and the fans love him. He wins you games. Then people ask, damn, i wish we had him for those few years before when he won the cup with that other team. Well, there's only one way to do that. This guy wasn't going to be on the board in the 2nd round. Take the pick for what it is. If he ever found a way to post 60 points in the NHL he would be as highly touted as Kopitar. Even if/when he doesn't, he's a winner.

#9 - Josh Leivo
I wasn't sure if i should put him here, and yet, it seems almost more silly not to. Just last year management thought of this kid as a future top-6. A lot of the fans seemed to believe it too. Sure, he didn't put up the big numbers we might have wanted. Sure, that nasty little word called consistency is a factor and that's a big concern, but it is just too soon and hasty to forget that he has real ability. In the vein of Percy, another off year will see his stock plummet, but that should not be the case now.

#10 - The goalies
Gibson, Bibeau, and Sparks. All have looked pretty excellent at times. All are young. Trouble with goalies is they take longer and we don't need another Rask incident. Still, chances are pretty good that one of these three at minimum becomes a quality future backup. Right now they are the foundation of a young AHL squad. Even if they don't pan out they are important to the development of all the kids. Got to count on the wisdom of the new management team to make sure that the 'right' choice is made about who to keep out of this bunch long term.

----------
Why no this guy?
Finn, Toninato, Nilsson, Valiev, Rupert, CV etc etc etc...
Tough choices. Someone has to go in, and someone has to go out. Finn COULD stil turn into a top pairing D. Toninato COULD still be a top-6 of the future. Nilsson did make rookie of the year runnerup along with Wennberg. At the end of the day, hopefully some of these guys force their way onto my list. For now, i had to prioritize certainty a little bit over hopefulness in my list. Also, the 'X' factor so to speak. Does the player win you games? In the case of a guy like Carrick, it is well established that he does.

Some people may look at putting Loov this high, but from what I've seen on the Marlies he's exactly what you describe. Out of all of our defense prospects he's the best in my eyes.

Pretty solid rankings here.

 

[CalgaryLeaf*]

Soon - it will be:

High End (Top line / Top Pairing Potential):

• Strome / Marner / Hanafin
• Nylander
• Nashville Pick

Good Prospects (Top 9 / Top 4 Potential):

• Brown
• Gauthier
• Johnson
• Percy
• Leipsic
• Bibeau
• Valiev
• Verhaeghe
• Cameranesi & Toninato

The Leafs will be extremely fortunate if Nashville's pick is "High End" talent. Hopefully Hunter can find a gem late in the late first round but I'm not counting on it.

 

[Rare Jewel]

1) Tyler Biggs
2) Sondre Olden
3) Jamie Devane
4) David Broll
5) Brad Ross
6) Greg McKegg
7) Greg Pateryn
8) Juraj Mikus
9) Matt Finn
10) Frederik Gauthier

Lol some horrible drafting

Any team could make a list like that. Most those guys were picked in the 3rd round or later; Where it's a little more difficult to get a player.

 

[Rare Jewel]

At this point is Nylander a better prospect than Rielly was?

Rielly's status as prospect is always a skewed because he missed his draft year pretty much.

So we didn't get the complete unbiased consensus on him through out the year. He was pretty much in the top 10 even though he was injured; But some people thought, Had he been healthy he may of challenged for 1st overall. It's impossible to say now, But getting him at 5th make us seem quite fortunate really.

To say who's the better prospect is all preference, I'm thrilled to have both of them.

 

[CalgaryLeaf*]

1. Nylander
2. Brown
3. Leipsic
4. Percy
5. Gauthier
6. Valiev
7. Verhaeghe
8. Antoine Bibeau
9. Finn
10 Loov
11 Johnson
12 Ryan Rupert

 

[Rare Jewel]

#6 - Sam Carrick
I honestly wanted to put Carrick at #4, but i knew i had to keep my emotions in check. He's not a stud. He's just the kind of player that would be a shoe in for Captain if he scored more goals. He is, frankly, the Dave Bolland of the Blackhawks the year they won the cup, except we aren't stuck having him ask 5 mil a year on a long term deal. We have him during his Blackhawk years. He's good on draws. Well above average defensively. He is going to play in the NHL if there is any justice, and he will help the team win games. He'll score between 10 and 20 goals a year if given 3rd line minutes during his prime. It's that simple.

I really like the whole post, But I wanted point this out. I'm a big fan of Carrick as well; He's got a lot to like as a hockey player, High compete level, Hockey sense and some skill and toughness to boot. With all respect to Trevor Smith and Zach Sill, I was annoyed when they were getting in up over Carrick in the latter part of the season.

 

[NotSince67*]

Seeing how most of you guys put Gauthier 8-10 is why Leaf fans drive me nuts....

Seriously, can anyone make a case of Carter Verhaghe being better than Gauthier without citing OHL point production which is only better by the slimmest of margins, despite having more advatageous usage and NOT benefitting from playing with a top 15 pick in Perlini. Seriously....

"Oh, I don't like his stats. BUST."

And then there's the ranking of a guy like Percy who's not even asserted himself after two years a top defenceman on the Marlies... Leivo who's seemed to regress this year and was't exactly a standout at the AHL level, just a good player.

I mean... really. It's not all about offensive production, and it's not all about top-6 potential. I take a guy who can contribute at the NHL level ANY DAY over a guy who's boom-or-bust and not exactly tracking in a way suggestive of breaking out any time soon.

 

[WilliamNylander]

1. Nylander
2. Brown
3. Leipsic
4. Loov
5. Gauthier
6. Percy
7. Johnson
8. Carrick
9. Valiev
10. Verhaghe

 

[jhmiddleton81]

I don't know too much about our prospects, but our top 4 is easy:
William Nylander
Andreas Johnson
Connor Brown
Brandon Leipsic

after that I don't know too much

All three are gonna be top 6 forwards

 

[Commander Clueless]

1. Nylander
2. Brown
3. Leipsic
4. Leivo
5. Percy
6. Verhaeghe
7. Johnson
8. Valiev
9. Finn
10. Gauthier

 

[highslot]

Writing an article for alongtheboards and want a general consensus of what people believe are the Leafs 10 best prospects.

Here are mine:

1. Nylander
2. Brown
3. Leipsic
4. Leivo
5. Johnson
6. Percy
7. Gauthier
8. Soshnikov
9. Bibeau
10. Finn


Thanks for your insight.

if they reach their potential

1. nylander 1c
2. percy 2d
3, bibeau 1a
4. valiev 3d
5. brown 2rw
6. johnson 2rw
7. leipsic 2w
8. toninato 2c
9. verhaeghe 2c
10. loov. 3d

 

[Guy Boucher]

According the Leafs Director of Amateur Scouting Morrison in the Future watch he ranks Leafs top 10 prospects as;

1) Nylander
2) Percy
3) Bibeau
4) Leipsic
5) Brown
6) Gauthier
7) Valiev
8) Leivo
9) Johnson
10) Granberg

This is a big misrepresented. He was asked who the top prospects he thought were and listed names, but I don't believe they were ranked in any specific order.

 

[highslot]

Seeing how most of you guys put Gauthier 8-10 is why Leaf fans drive me nuts....

Seriously, can anyone make a case of Carter Verhaghe being better than Gauthier without citing OHL point production which is only better by the slimmest of margins, despite having more advatageous usage and NOT benefitting from playing with a top 15 pick in Perlini. Seriously....

"Oh, I don't like his stats. BUST."

And then there's the ranking of a guy like Percy who's not even asserted himself after two years a top defenceman on the Marlies... Leivo who's seemed to regress this year and was't exactly a standout at the AHL level, just a good player.

I mean... really. It's not all about offensive production, and it's not all about top-6 potential. I take a guy who can contribute at the NHL level ANY DAY over a guy who's boom-or-bust and not exactly tracking in a way suggestive of breaking out any time soon.

it's pretty vague. i think most posters like me are looking at the ultimate potential not the odds of making the nhl IF we are talking about top 10. so for me, it is boom or bust.

gauthier is top 5 for making the nhl, but i don't believe he has the offensive potential of toninato or verhaeghe and hockey smarts, vision and skating ability. defense is a skill that be taught. offense, not so much.

i also like gauthier and if he's a hanzal i wouldn't complain. the fact remains that the top 6 and the top pairing are reserved for primarily offensive players, many of whom have 2 way potential.

so when we are talking about our best potential prospects, i think it goes without saying that we are talking about who are closest to being stars or top line. and you can't talk about top line without including offense.

lastly, with percy, although it was a small sample size, his first several games up showed that when the stars were aligned, he was in fact the leafs best d. until he fell apart.