Nazem Kadri’s season may be done, but the Maple Leafs have three games remaining and are in position ‘A’ at this point for the 2016 lottery draft. With a number of quality players to choose from, the Leafs scouting and management team must be digging deep right now in preparation to select the most fitting players, and needs for the organization.
More and more intelligence should be pushed forward for the Toronto Maple Leafs when it comes to the draft, free agency and finding college players who have been flying under the radar. With the vast amount of money and brainpower that now runs the organization, there is no reason for Toronto to not go the extra mile when it comes to being as prepared as possible. Without question Mark Hunter did his homework last season as the Leafs had an outstanding draft, hopefully one that can be repeated this offseason. As mentioned before, with the number of quality players in the first round, and the substantial number of picks that Toronto has this season, I wouldn’t be the least bit surprised to see us move up with Pittsburgh’s pick if a certain player the Leafs have on their radar is available.
At this point, the cupboards are starting to fill up and if the Leafs brass is content with what they have brewing, perhaps they will consider giving up a pick or prospect to get the player they have targeted. There is also the option of the Leafs going after a young player, whether it is a goaltender or a young forward like Drouin or Yakupov. With so many picks in Toronto’s back pocket, all avenues should be explored.
Whether or not it’s first overall or fifth overall, I look forward to Toronto’s newest top prospect joining the team. I’m still a firm believer that our most glaring need is a legit number one goalie and I don’t expect us to draft an 18 year old and management are content. Without question I feel the organization will work hard at improving their situation between the pipes, and a prospect and or picks may be involved.
With only three games left in the season versus Columbus, Philadelphia and New Jersey, the Leafs will be without their number one center and highest point producer. Kadri hasn’t been quiet this season as he has had some interaction on the ice with a number of players and dealing with the NHL with fines and suspensions. I love it, the kid has some grit, and he’s working hard on both ends of the ice. Nazem Kadri has more shots and scoring chances than any other Leaf player, and his possession numbers are way up as he has been on the ice for 53.25% of Toronto’s shots attempts at even strength.
It will be interesting to see how Brendan and Lou handle the Kadri contract in the off-season. They have the option of giving him a bridge deal to further assess his play, or sign him to a longer termed deal at a more affordable rate. After all, Kadri didn’t have his best season points wise, but I would argue that it was his best as an overall player. Perhaps this is the time to lockup the former first round pick by the Maple Leafs, before his team and line-mates improve and his production increases.
Babcock on Kadri: "He’s a better player than I thought. He had a good year, he competes hard . . . he’s got to work more on his shot and work on getting bigger and stronger in the summer. The better summer he has the better pro he has a chance to be.…
If the Leafs lose tonight, they will be guaranteed a 29th or 30th place finish in the National Hockey League. Which means at worst Toronto would draft 5th overall if they finished 29th. As much as I love the Leafs and want them to win games, I’d thoroughly enjoy finishing the season with three duds and having the best odds at Matthews and keeping in the top four overall.
Here are the percentiles at which your odds are for the first overall in this year’s new structured format:
1: 20% 2: 13.5% 3: 11.5% 4: 9.5% 5: 8.5% 6: 7.5% 7: 6.5% 8: 6% 9: 5% 10: 3.5% 11: 3% 12: 2.5% 13: 2% 14: 1%
Thanks for reading and enjoy tonight’s game.