The Toronto Maple Leafs won games against the Ottawa Senators, Montreal Canadiens and Pittsburgh Penguins at the annual Rookie Tournament in London, ON last weekend, but more importantly learned about their prospects in advance of the start of training camp on Thursday.
While a more detailed evaluation will be made over the next three weeks in eight exhibition games, the performances in London gave Leafs management and their coaching staff an idea of how much progress young players have made over the summer.
Any harm done by a poor showing over the weekend is not irreparable, just as playing impressively is not a guarantee of future entry into the NHL.
Of the more than 30 players who played, here are five who made a favorable impression and five who did not meet expectations or were hardly noticeable.
Standouts
Martins Dzierkals - The Leafs 2015 third rounder was the best Leafs forward against the Canadiens on Saturday, showing shiftiness, skating and playmaking ability. The Latvian winger had two assists against Montreal and also showed a physical side to his game with some solid forechecking.
The 19-year-old is currently unsigned, which might become more of a priority if he continues to impress.
Nikita Korostelev – Toronto’s leading scorer on the weekend, the 2015 seventh rounder had two assists on Saturday and two goals, one assist in the 6-5 overtime win over Pittsburgh.
Korostelev displayed an awkward skating stride in his first training camp last September, but that was less noticeable this time around. The Moscow native will head back to Sarnia for his fourth OHL season and he is also not signed to an entry-level contract.
Andrew Nielsen - The 19-year-old blueliner has gotten stronger over the summer and continues to improve offensively after a stellar year with the Lethbridge Hurricanes. Nielsen scored the game winner against Montreal and added a goal and two assists on Sunday, including a lead pass that sprung Jeremy Bracco on a clear cut breakaway in overtime.
Andrew Nielsen's game winner. Final Score: 4-3 Leafs. #TMLtalk https://t.co/ZSWB1zFd5h
— Toronto Maple Leafs (@MapleLeafs) September 18, 2016
Dmytro Timashov - The Swedish winger was an offensive catalyst Toronto’s opening victory over Ottawa on Friday, playing with rookie Trevor Moore and center Frederik Gauthier. Timashov assisted on Moore’s first period goal and bounced back after getting rocked by a Sens defenseman.
Jeremy Bracco - The diminutive winger was hardly noticeable on Saturday, except for leaving the ice to get repairs for a cut upper lip. Bracco stepped up against Pittsburgh, scoring a pair of goals, including the overtime winner. There is no doubting the 19-year-old Long Island native's skills, but he could end up being a victim of the numbers game with so many Leafs forward prospects being smaller forwards.
The 2015 second rounder is the highest Toronto draft pick yet to be signed. If that continues through the season, you could see talk of Bracco being included in trade packages gain steam.
Pt 2 - The Stumblers on Wednesday
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