For the big club, the preseason is just around the corner and players are attending their respective camps. For others, like some NHL prospects in the KHL, the season is already underway and we can check in on games that actually matter.
The Toronto Maple Leafs are getting set to build on a season that saw them crack the second round of the playoffs and will be looking to do so with some new faces to open the campaign. While some were brought in through free agency, others will be jumping the ranks to the NHL roster.
So, with that we could also see some new faces in our Maple Leafs’ prospect reports this season and what better way to kick it off than to check in on a KHL prospect, the team’s latest first-round pick and more.
Nikita Grebyonkin Starting Off Strong
Coming off a big rookie season in the KHL in which he earned the Aleksei Cherepanov Award for best rookie, Nikita Grebyonkin is picking up right where he left off last season. After putting up nine goals and 26 points in 45 games with Amur Khabarovsk on loan last season, the 20-year-old has kicked off the new campaign with Metallurg Magnitogorsk as a scoring machine.
Through his first five games this season, Grebyonkin has three goals and is currently tied for the team lead in that department. On top of that his team is an impressive 4-0-1 through five games this season and lead the Eastern Conference in the KHL.
As for what we can expect from the fifth-round pick in 2022, his goal scoring is only part of the package. He’s creative and knows how to control the puck and he could very quickly become a favourite amongst the Maple Leafs’ prospects this season.
Still, he remains unsigned by the club for the moment, but this certainly won’t be the last we hear of him this season.
Easton Cowan Getting Opportunities in London
Another Maple Leafs’ prospect that is set to have a big year is this year’s first-round surprise pick, Easton Cowan. Cowan’s coming off a season that saw him post good numbers in his first full year with the London Knights, scoring 20 goals and 53 points in 68 regular season games before exploding in the playoffs for nine goals and 21 points in 20 games.
During preseason play, Cowan has slotted in on the Knights’ second line alongside Denver Barkey and Kasper Halttunen, two fellow picks from the 2023 NHL Draft. While Cowan went 28th overall to the Maple Leafs, Barkey was the 95th overall pick to the Philadelphia Flyers with Halttunen going 36th overall to the San Jose Sharks.
Barkey and Cowan already have some familiarity from playing with each other on the Knights last season. But the highly anticipated arrival of Halttunen could be just what Cowan needs to hit that century mark in points this season.
All eyes will be on Cowan this season in London with expectations already set high on the 18-year-old following his first-round selection in the draft.
Traverse City Invite Includes Mazden Leslie
While the roster hasn’t been released just yet, there will be some invites added to the Maple Leafs pool of prospects. In recent years, guys like Nick Robertson had question runs in Traverse City while others like Pontus Holmberg have shone and earned opportunities because of it.
One name that has already surfaced as an invite for the Maple Leafs is undrafted 18-year-old defenceman Mazden Leslie. The six-foot-one right-handed defenceman plays for the Vancouver Giants of the WHL and had a breakout season offensively in 2022-23. He finished the year with 12 goals and 50 points in 66 games and saw an increase of 31 points from his previous high with the Giants.
Related: Toronto Maple Leafs Prospect Pyramid – Start of 2022-23
He plays a physical game and can close out defensively which should make him an interesting prospect to watch at the upcoming Traverse City tournament.
As for the remaining prospects, they’ll get set to get their respective seasons underway over the coming weeks and we’ll be sure to have all the top news and headlines when it comes to the Maple Leafs’ pipeline this season in our prospect reports.
