The concerted effort to cast a shadow of doubt on who the Toronto Maple Leafs will select on June 24th at the NHL Draft in Buffalo has been good fodder for the media and fans since the club won the Draft Lottery last month.
Patrik Laine's performance at the World Championships has only contributed to the intrigue, as the big winger scored his seventh goal of the tournament in Finland's 5-1 victory over Denmark on Thursday, but presumptive top pick Auston Matthews has not exactly been a slouch.
Patrik Laine strikes again, scores his 7th of the tournament during Quarterfinal against Denmark #IIHFWorlds pic.twitter.com/g96eWQWAWU
— Robert Söderlind (@HockeyWebCast) May 19, 2016
The 18-year-old leads Team USA in scoring with eight points (5 goals, 3 assists) and was a one-man show at the Ice Palace in Moscow, scoring the tying goal in the second period and the Americans lone tally in the shootout in a 2-1 victory over the Czechs.
Frank Vatrano to Auston Matthews for the goal pic.twitter.com/4cpCdpQvRH
— Pete Blackburn (@PeteBlackburn) May 19, 2016
While not diminishing Laine's exploits in Russia, the 18-year-old is playing for a very strong Finnish squad and has been on a line with Florida's Aleksander Barkov and Leo Komarov of the Maple Leafs (although Barkov was out of Finland's lineup against Denmark).
Auston Matthews is a STUD! #IIHFWorlds https://t.co/OzJ41pnLYI
— NHL on NBC (@NHLonNBCSports) May 19, 2016
The US did not bring any of their stars that will be part of their World Cup club later this summer and their roster consists of inexperienced NHLers (Jake McCabe, Connor Murphy), players from the NCAA (JT Compher, Tyler Motte, Miles Wood) and the AHL (Vincent Hinostroza, Brady Skjei, Frank Vatrano), which makes Matthews feat on Thursday even more impressive.
There is no doubt that Laine has elevated his stock ahead of the Draft next month, but the performance of the Scottsdale, AZ native has been just as impressive and leaves little doubt who Toronto will be choosing.
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Listen to the latest edition of "The Convo" with myself and CTV's Norman James, as we discuss the Marlies victory over Albany, the Matthews - Laine debate and the Memorial Cup with CTV's Brent Lale:
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