The Toronto Maple Leafs close out the annual Rookie Tournament in London, ON Sunday night against the Pittsburgh Penguins, giving Kasperi Kapanen his first opportunity to play against the team that took him in the first round of the 2014 NHL Draft and traded him to acquire winger Phil Kessel.
The deal that sent the young Finn, defenseman Scott Harrington, forward Nick Spaling and a pair of high draft picks to Toronto stunned Kapanen, who nearly made the Penguins last September before being sent back to KalPa Kuopio in the Finnish SM-Liiga.
“I didn’t expect it.“ Kapanen said to
Dave Molinari of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. ”I was just with my buddies(in Finland) and I saw that my Twitter was exploding. I read some of the tweets and didn’t really think too much about it, but then my agent called me, so I thought something was going on.“
The 19-year-old winger is looking to open the eyes of head coach Mike Babcock at training camp, but is realistic about his chances of making the Leafs with the focus on player development and the number of veterans added by Toronto over the summer.
“I’m just here to have fun and enjoy the moment.” Kapanen said. “If I’m good enough, then they’ll keep me. If not, then I’ll go down but it doesn’t mean if get sent down that I won’t be playing, so I just have to keep myself motivated.”
The odds of a young player like Kapanen breaking into the Leafs lineup were long, but the tryout contracts extended to wingers Devin Setoguchi, Curtis Glencross and Brad Boyes make it a near impossibility. One or two of the veterans could earn a spot on the Leafs roster as a depth player, while the club’s top prospects get a heavy workload in the AHL.
*******
Toronto lost their second game of the weekend with a lineup fairly bereft of notable names, as the Montreal Canadiens registered a 6-4 victory at Budweiser Gardens on Saturday night. Free agent defenseman Nikolas Brouillard scored a pair and Jack Rodewald and Michael Joly scored singles for the Leafs, who scratched Kapanen, William Nylander and Mitch Marner.
Brouillard scored 57 points in 61 games in his overage year for the QMJHL’s Quebec Remparts and the 20-year-old blueliner hopes to get an invitation to Leafs training camp next week. The 5’11” 168 lb defenseman was noticeable not only for his offense but for his willingness to get into a tussle with big Montreal blueliner Brett Lernout.
Marlies head coach Sheldon Keefe indicated that the trio of first rounders would likely play on Sunday and that Garret Sparks would get the start after free agent goalies Justin Nichols and Lucas Peressini faced heavier than expected workload in the first two games.
*******
See Previous Columns
First Impressions Of Leafs Prospects At Rookie Tournament
Swedes In Stereo; Sundin Joins Salming On Legend’s Row
Leafs Starting From Scratch Under Babcock
Goals Biggest Concern For Leafs In The Post-Kessel Era
Which Leafs Have Chance To Play In World Cup?
*******If you are interested in sponsorship or advertising your business in the Greater Toronto / Southern Ontario area on this column, please send a message for more information by clicking on the “Contact” button at the top of the page.*******
Note : Continue to check back to my column on Hockeybuzz throughout the day for the latest Leafs updates or on Twitter
KINDLE USERS: Please sign up for Maple Leafs Buzz, which includes a free-of-charge 14-day trial and is just 99 cents per month afterwards. For more information
click here.
Toronto Maple Leafs Blogger • 
Join the Discussion:
»