maple leafs

Are the Leafs looking for reinforcements from NCAA prospects?

Mar 25, 2022 • 11:41 am

Be sure to like HockeyBuzz on facebook!

For the latest Leafs updates or Follow @mikeinbuffalo on Twitter

*******If you are interested in sponsorship or advertising your business in the Greater Toronto / Southern Ontario area on this column, please send a message for more information by clicking on the “Contact… button at the top of the page.*******

The Toronto Maple Leafs made an interesting and perhaps not insignificant move after the deadline that may be explicable in the next few weeks. On Wednesday, the club announced that Nashville defenseman Philippe Myers was being loaned to the AHL Marlies and that blueliner Brennan Menell had been traded to the Philadelphia Flyers for future considerations.

Myers, 25, cleared waivers prior to the trade and remains Predators property with a year left on his contract. Menell, 24, spent three seasons in the Minnesota Wild organization and was signed as an unrestricted free agent to a one-year deal last July after scoring 38 points in 47 KHL games with Dynamo Minsk, but only saw part-time duty with the Marlies, with five points (1 goal, 4 assists) in 20 games.

Menell being moved to the last place Phantoms was likely done to clear a pro deal off the Leafs books, as they now well under the 50-contract limit and have the ability to sign up to four players.

Some of that space may be used to sway NCAA free agents to sign an entry-level contract with Toronto and burn the first year of the deal as an enticement, while other spots could be used to sign existing Leafs prospects using the same tactic.

Leafs prospect Nick Abruzzese had a massive 2 goal 2 assist game for @HarvardMHockey last night in the ECAC semis. pic.twitter.com/StRFOGPED8
— Rink Rat Report (@RinkRatReport) March 19, 2022

One possible option is Harvard center and 2019 Leafs draftee Nick Abruzzese. The 22-year-old US Olympian’s college season ended on Thursday, as the Crimson lost to Minnesota State in the first round of the NCAA tournament. While it is possible that Abruzzese returns to Harvard for his senior season, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman indicated on a recent “32 Thoughts… podcast that there is a chance that he signs with Toronto with the possibility of being a depth option in the playoffs or play for the Marlies in the Calder Cup Playoffs.

Another possibility is 2021 second-rounder Matthew Knies. The big 19-year-old winger also played for Team USA in Beijing and averaged nearly a point-per-game as a freshman for the University of Minnesota. The Golden Gophers play the reigning NCAA Champion UMass Minutemen on Friday, and if they lose there has been some chatter that the Leafs may urge Knies to turn pro.