The Toronto Maple Leafs have one of the strongest fanbases in the NHL. Whether they’re having a winning season or not, they can sell out home games with ease and even when they’re the visiting team, it sounds like half the stadium is full of Maple Leafs fans. This season, the Maple Leafs faithful have been tested as the team has struggled to maintain a playoff spot and find themselves in a wild card position heading towards the All-Star break. While it seems as though they won’t have an issue making the playoffs this season, there have been some concerns over roster construction and questionable signings from new general manager Brad Treliving.
From signing Ryan Reaves and John Klingberg to keeping Sheldon Keefe as the team’s head coach, fans have begun to wonder if these decisions will pay off as they look to win their first Stanley Cup since 1967. While all of the drama surrounding the team has been fun to keep track of, one player has been trying to make a name for himself in one of the biggest markets in the NHL, if not the biggest. Nick Robertson has been nothing short of a project for the Maple Leafs since they picked him up in the 2019 NHL Entry Draft. While he isn’t quite on the level of his brother Jason, he has slowly been proving himself as an NHL mainstay with his play as of late.
Robertson was considered a very strong prospect at the time the Maple Leafs drafted him and he seemed to be one of the team’s best prospects in their prospect pool at the time. His grittiness and speed were praised by numerous outlets and fans were excited to see if he could transfer his offensive output from the Ontario Hockey League (OHL) to the NHL and become a top-six forward with the Maple Leafs one day.
“Undersized but tenacious forward with high-end goal scoring ability. Could grow into a top-six scoring winger as he continues to adjust to the pro pace.”
– DobberProspects (Nick Robertson Prospect Report – 2023)
Despite his inability to maintain a spot in the NHL throughout his career, he has continued to find a way to elevate his game and remain in the lineup as of late. His offensive output this season has been impressive as the Maple Leafs enter their All-Star break having scored seven goals along with seven assists for 14 points through 29 games. With the Toronto Marlies in the American Hockey League (AHL) this season as well, Robertson has scored five goals adding six assists for 11 points through nine games, but it seems as though he won’t be sent down again this season.
Robertson’s Career So Far
While Robertson has been building a reputation as a potential top-six forward in a few seasons with the Maple Leafs, let’s take a quick look back at his career leading up to his start as a professional. He started his career in the 2017-18 season with the Peterborough Petes of the OHL where he scored 15 goals and 18 assists for 33 points through 62 games in his rookie season. It was clear he was somebody who could have a long career ahead of him, but he had some things to fine tune including his skating, defensive play, and confidence.
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In Robertson’s draft year during the 2018-19 season, he scored 27 goals adding 28 assists for 55 points through 54 games, and finished the season leading his team in points. He exploded offensively and caught the attention of numerous teams, but ultimately was selected by the Maple Leafs. He made it clear after being selected that he was extremely happy to be a part of their organization and hoped he could become a big part of their future.
“It was definitely exciting…Toronto was kind of one of the places I wanted to go to and to be their first pick in [this year’s] draft is something special.”
– Nick Robertson after being drafted (Canadian teams add talent to prospect pools)
Robertson returned to the Petes the following season where he was named an alternate captain and had the best offensive season of his OHL career. In 46 games, he scored 55 goals adding 31 assists for 86 points, which comes out to an impressive 1.87 points-per-game average. That same season, he earned the opportunity to represent his home country of the United States at the U20 World Junior Championship where he scored two goals adding three assists for five points through five games.
Robertson earned his first taste of NHL action with the Maple Leafs in the 2020-21 season where he scored no goals but had an assist through six games. He spent more time in the AHL with the Marlies scoring five goals and adding 11 assists for 16 points through 21 games. It was this season when he began to deal with injuries that held him back from playing for a full season despite his clear ability and willingness to play wherever the Maple Leafs asked him to.
The following season was similarly short for Robertson, who only played ten games with the Maple Leafs scoring his first NHL goal, but again he spent most of his time with the Marlies where he scored 16 goals adding 12 assists for 28 points through 28 games. The 2022-23 season was a career-high in goals, assists, and points for Robertson who scored two goals adding three assists for five points through 15 games in the NHL. He only played two games in the AHL that season scoring one goal and adding one assist for two points.
This campaign has been Robertson’s best of his career. As mentioned, he has 14 points through 29 games with the Maple Leafs and has shattered his career-high in all three categories.
Robertson’s Injury History
Robertson has had a lengthy injury history during his short professional career. Early in 2021, he missed a month with a knee injury. Later on, he suffered a leg injury and missed just over three months. In late 2022, he suffered a shoulder injury which resulted in him missing seven and a half months. Robertson has been healthy since September 2023 so hopefully, he will be able to stay healthy and continue to develop himself as a future top-six player with the Maple Leafs.
How Can Robertson Continue To Flourish?
Robertson currently plays on the Maple Leafs’ third line alongside Max Domi and Pontus Holmberg. While the top-six is pretty set in stone for the rest of the season, it wouldn’t hurt to mess around with their lineup a bit. If it were up to me, I’d put Robertson on the second line for a few games to see how he does alongside some stronger players in William Nylander and John Tavares. If it doesn’t work out, move him back onto the third line. It wouldn’t hurt to continue giving him opportunities and boosting his confidence with those types of chances.
With how well Robertson has been playing this season, it’s no surprise he’s been given the biggest opportunity of his career with the Maple Leafs. While he’s remained healthy, he has shown that he can produce well at the NHL level and now his development can take off, assuming Keefe is willing to give him a chance to showcase himself in the top-six.
Robertson has proven he can be an offensive powerhouse at the AHL level with the Marlies regardless of his unfortunate injury history so hopefully, this is the beginning of something great for him in Toronto.
What’s Next For The Maple Leafs?
The Maple Leafs are coming off a 4-2 win over the Winnipeg Jets on Saturday (Jan. 27) which gives them some momentum as they head into the All-Star break. They don’t play again until Feb. 5 when they face the New York Islanders and hope to build off of the three-game winning streak they’ve built. Hopefully, Robertson and the Maple Leafs can have a good second half of the season and he can continue to prove his worth to the team. Maybe, he could even be a big part of the postseason if he has a good second half of the regular season. The team and fans are pulling for him, it’s now up to Robertson to show what he’s made of.