Maple Leafs GM Dave Nonis can do a number of things on Friday, when representatives of the 30 NHL clubs meet at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia for the annual Entry Draft.
The only option that may not be open to him is to stand pat with his current club and simply select a player 8th overall, based on the Leafs failure to make the post-season and the call from MLSE Chairman Tim Leiweke, new Team President Brendan Shanahan and scores of disgruntled fans to make upgrades to their roster.
The next few weeks promises to be very busy on the trade market, as the RJ Umberger and 4th round pick for Scott Hartnell deal between the Blue Jackets and Flyers this morning would indicate.
According to CBC/Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman in his “30 Thoughts… column, Nonis is approaching this critical time in “stealth mode…, throwing out most everyone on his roster for possible trade to see what opportunities present themselves and possibly masking what player(s) he wants to move.
Friedman does not believe that Toronto will make a deal just for the sake of making a deal and that 20-year-old blueliner Morgan Rielly, Jonathan Bernier and Phil Kessel are untouchables, but they hope to add quality depth at forward and shuffle up their defensive corps, which had a horrific 2013-14 season.
He also does not rule out the possibility of Toronto trading up into the top part of the first round(depending on the price) or even moving their eighth pick overall for a veteran player with term remaining who can help them immediately.
The much rumored possibility of the Leafs and Florida making a deal for the top pick in the draft this Friday gained a little more momentum this morning, as Panthers GM Dale Tallon stated that he has received a serious offer for the first pick and doesn’t want to go any lower than the eighth pick if his club were to consider a swap of first rounders.
#FlaPanthers Tallon says he doesn't want to drop any farther than eighth in the first round. Let the rumors begin.
— George Richards (@GeorgeRichards) June 23, 2014Speculation over the last month has linked both center Nazem Kadri and defenseman Dion Phaneuf in a deal to Florida to move up to #1 overall.
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Maple Leafs 2013 first round pick Frederik Gauthier is among 41 players invited to Team Canada's junior summer development camp in August. The 19-year-old center was a member of Canada’s 2013 WJC squad and played mostly in a checking role, scoring one assist in seven games and had a solid season with the Rimouski Oceanic of the QMJHL, with 18 goals and 34 assists in 54 games.
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