The Toronto Maple Leafs have five prospects on display at the 2016 IIHF World Junior Championships in Helsinki that begin on Saturday. Forwards William Nylander, Kasperi Kapanen and Mitch Marner and defenseman Travis Dermott were all selected in the first or second round in the last two drafts and that makes their inclusion not a big surprise.
That is not the case with Dmytro Timashov.
The product of Ukrainian and Swedish parents was selected by Toronto in the fifth round (125th overall) in the 2015 NHL Draft after winning QMJHL Rookie of the Year and finishing second in the league with 71 assists last season.
The 19-year-old impressed at the Leafs rookie tournament, during training camp and has thrived offensively in his sophomore season with the Quebec Remparts.
“He’s been really good for Quebec and I’m really interested in how he does (at the WJC).… Leafs Director of Player Personnel Mark Hunter said from Finland on Monday. “I think he is going to be the sleeper of the bunch in this tournament that surprises a lot of people.…
Timashov is currently 7th in the QMJHL with 53 points in 29 games and is one short of matching his rookie total of 19 goals in less than half a season and perhaps took a first step in fulfilling Hunter’s prophecy by being named Sweden’s player of the game for a three assist effort in a 6-3 exhibition win over Slovakia on Monday.
His future after the tournament may be in question after reports surfaced last weekend that Timashov may be traded by the Remparts to Shawinigan or Moncton. According to Anthony Marcotte of TVA Sports, the winger will not report to a new team if traded and would prefer to play in Sweden.
Hunter is hopeful that the handful of Leafs prospects will be front and center over the next two weeks, especially Nylander and Marner, who will be on the top offensive lines for Sweden and Canada.
“It should be a big tournament for (Nylander).… Hunter said of the AHL scoring leader. “He’ll be their top player.…
4-0-mà¥let. William Nylander Ass Alexander, Forsling pic.twitter.com/6gxJBSpYX2
— Henrik Sjöberg (@sjobergh) December 21, 2015Marner will play right wing with Florida 2014 first rounder Lawson Crouse and Arizona 2015 top pick Dylan Strome instead of center, as he has most of the season with the London Knights.
The fact that the fourth overall pick is not getting work up the middle on a consistent basis may be a signal that he will start his NHL career on the wing, but that the Leafs feel he can eventually transition there.
“I think he’s got to get physically stronger. I think we all know that and I think he knows that,… Hunter said. “I think he is very capable of playing center. He works hard at both ends of the ice, he’s got a very good work ethic, I just think he needs more strength.… Dermott survived the final cut down by Team Canada on Sunday and the Erie Otters defenseman could be in line to quarterback the top power play unit for the upcoming tournament.
“He’s a young man that leading their team in Erie and he’s playing every other shift.… “We are hoping some day that he will be a top-four defenseman for the Leafs and all top-four defensemen play 25 minutes, so I see that growth in him (with the Otters) and their team is winning, so I’ve been really pleasantly surprised how he has handled the ice time (in the OHL).
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The Leafs take to the road for back-to-back road games prior to their four-day Christmas break and face the red-hot Colorado Avalanche at the Pepsi Center in Denver on Monday.
The Avs are not playing like the team that Toronto dominated 5-1 on November 17, as they are now over .500 (17-16-1) after winning five games in a row. Colorado coach Patrick Roy will go with Semyon Varlamov in goal, who allowed only two goals in victories over Chicago, the NY Islanders and Edmonton last week and earned NHL 1st Star of the Week honors on Monday.
The Leafs will start Jonathan Bernier off of his first win and shutout of the season against Los Angeles on Saturday. Toronto is not expected to make any changes to their lineup, which means recent call up Rich Clune and defenseman Frank Corrado will sit.
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