Leafs D prospect shows shifty, deceptive playmaking skills in Memorial Cup Playoffs on Saturday
The Leafs have several prospects drafted in the mid-to-late rounds in recent years who have appeared to exceed all expectations and may actually even develop into NHL players. The QMJHL's Defenseman of the Year, William Villeneuve, could be one of them.
Villeneuve enjoyed a successful 2021-22 campaign with the Saint John Sea Dogs, scoring 8 goals and adding 48 assists for 56 points in 64 games in his 4th major junior season. All signs point towards the 20-year-old moving up and joining the Marlies this upcoming season and, from there, the rest will be up to him.
Villeneuve and the Sea Dogs are currently involved in the Memorial Cup Playoffs, and the Sherbrooke, PQ native made a dandy of a play at the blue line on Saturday to keep the play alive, juke out the Shawinigan defender and feed NYI prospect William Dufour for a precision one-timer to get the Cataractes' lead to 2.
Villeneuve was a 4th round pick by the Leafs (122nd overall) back in 2020. He was originally thought to be an absolute long shot, but due to his incredible vision and playmaking ability, he has really begun to make a name for himself as a potential mid-round steal for the Leafs. Will he make the NHL? As I said, that will be entirely up to him. But he certainly does have the offensive tools to make it. If he can use his time with the Marlies to brush up on the defensive aspects of the game and speed up his decision making, he could be a very intriguing prospect for the Buds.
| POLL | ||
JUIN 25 | 299 ANSWERS Leafs D prospect shows shifty, deceptive playmaking skills in Memorial Cup Playoffs on Saturday Will William Villeneuve eventually play games for the Leafs? | ||
| Yes | 158 | 52.8 % |
| Never | 51 | 17.1 % |
| Play games? He'll be a star! | 22 | 7.4 % |
| He'll cap out with the Marlies | 68 | 22.7 % |
| List of polls | ||
