Highly touted Leafs prospect and USHL scoring leader selects development path and is nearing an announcement on his future
There has been no shortage of discussion about the Toronto Maple Leafs for the past few weeks. While most of the discussion has been negative, especially after failing to register a win against San Jose, LA and Anaheim, there are still some positives surrounding the organization. One of those bright spots is Nicholas Moldenhauer, who will reportedly select an NCAA program soon, after narrowing down his list.
Moldenhauer is a 3rd round pick of the Leafs from the 2022 NHL Entry Draft, just a few months ago. The Mississauga, ON native is currently playing for the Chicago Steel in the USHL, having scored 10 goals and 6 assists (16 points) through 11 games, making him the current leading scorer of the USHL.
While this doesn't exactly help the Leafs right now, it is good to see that they have prospects like Moldenhauer in the system, who are excelling in their current leagues, who could potentially join the Leafs after an additional year or two of development. In Moldenhauer's case, since he is a mid-round pick, he could play out his entire NCAA career before joining the Leafs in his early 20's.
There has been a lot of discussion in the media about if Kyle Dubas should be the GM of the Leafs past this season (or even finish the year), but one thing that should help him keep his job is his solid drafting. Landing a prospect like Moldenhauer at the end of the 3rd round is one of many examples of that. Sarnia Sting forward OHL leading scorer Ty Voit is another (2021 5th rounder).
| POLL | ||
OCTOBRE 31 | 116 ANSWERS Highly touted Leafs prospect and USHL scoring leader selects development path and is nearing an announcement on his future Is the NCAA the right development path for Moldenhauer? | ||
| Yes | 76 | 65.5 % |
| No | 40 | 34.5 % |
| List of polls | ||
