Aside from Knies, Woll and Robertson, here are the current top-10 prospects in the Leafs' pipeline
While NHL Network and other services don't believe in the Toronto Maple Leafs' pipeline - at least when measured against the rest of the NHL - the Buds certainly have their fair share of good-to-great prospects for a team that either trades their first round pick or drafts very late on a yearly basis.
Now, based on their age and their standing with the club, Matthew Knies, Nicholas Robertson, and Joseph Woll are omitted from the list of top prospects. Even with those 3 names omitted, the top-5 will probably come as no surprise to most:
1. Fraser Minten: C, Kamloops Blazers (WHL) 31 goals and 67 points in 57 games in 2022-23, drafted 38th overall, in the 2nd round of the 2022 NHL Entry Draft
2. Topi Niemela: RHD, 18 points in 58 games for Karpat in SM-Liiga and 2 points in 6 games for the Marlies, drafted in the 3rd round of the 2020 NHL Entry Draft
3. Roni Hirvonen: C/W, HIFK in Liiga, 15 goals and 28 points in 57 games, drafted in the 2nd round of the 2020 NHL Entry Draft
4. Easton Cowan: C, London Knights, 20 goals and 53 points in 68 games, drafted in the 1st round of the 2023 NHL Entry Draft
5. Nicholas Moldenhauer: C/W, Chicago Steel, 30 goals and 75 points in 55 games, committed to University of Michigan in 2023-24, drafted in the 3rd round of the 2022 NHL Entry Draft The interesting part - and it's well open for debate - are the players that follow between 6-8 because certain players like Ryan Tverberg have jumped up several spots from previous years, while others like Ty Voit remain consistent contributors:
6. Ryan Tverberg7. Nikita Grebyonkin/Grebenkin8. Ty Voit9. Dennis Hildeby10. Vyacheslav Peksa
6. Ryan Tverberg: The 7th round pick from the 2020 NHL Entry Draft has done very well for himself for such a late pick and is coming off of 3 successive seasons with the University of Connecticut. He scored 29 goals and 62 points in 71 games in the last 2 seasons and made 7 appearances for the Toronto Marlies last year.
The 5th last pick of the draft is already looking like a diamond in the rough as many scouts have talked about his high hockey IQ, his relentlessness along the boards, his great penalty killing, and the ability to play in all situations.
7. Nikita Grebyonkin: Drafted in the 5th round of the 2022 NHL Entry Draft, Grebyonkin has quietly put up consistent numbers throughout his tenure in the Russian circuit.
He scored 17 goals and 64 points in 58 games during his draft season in the MHL and then put up 26 points in 45 games last year in his first full season in the KHL. The 6'2 winger is very crafty and skilled, has remarkable puck handling abilities, and is an extremely well rounded skater with exceptional speed. He's also not a defensive liability, which is refreshing.
8. Ty Voit: Another late round pick, Voit was drafted in the 5th round in 2021 and has put up exceptional numbers in the OHL for the Sarnia Sting. He dropped a few rounds in the draft because no one was able to see him play due to the season being cancelled in 2020-21, but he put up 80 points in 67 games in 2021-22. He followed that up with 81 assists and 105 points in 2022-23 and an additional 16 points in the post-season. The 20-year-old should report to the Toronto Marlies ahead of the 2023-24 season.
Both Hildeby and Peksa, whom we have ranked #9 and #10, have solid bases, but we gave the edge to Hildeby, who is a full year older than Peksa and already has some pro experience under his belt. Both appear to have a tremendous amount of skill, but with Hildeby being closer to NHL-ready, that was definitely a consideration.
| POLL | ||
12 AOUT | 188 ANSWERS Aside from Knies, Woll and Robertson, here are the current top-10 prospects in the Leafs' pipeline Do you agree with this list of the current top-10 prospects in the Leafs' system? | ||
| Yes | 79 | 42 % |
| No, not even close | 25 | 13.3 % |
| No, but pretty close | 48 | 25.5 % |
| Don't care | 36 | 19.1 % |
| List of polls | ||
