Rookie forward Fraser Minten is getting special mentors for training camp
When Fraser Minten was selected 38th overall by the Maple Leafs, many fans were puzzled. The pick used for Minten had been acquired in a deal that sent Petr Mrazek and the 26th overall pick to Chicago. The Leafs moved back 13 spots to clear Mrazek's contract for the next two seasons. Not a bad deal considering Mrazek's awful season in Toronto, but Minten ended up being seen as a consolation prize nonetheless. That all changed at the Traverse City Prospects Tournament.
Minten turned heads at the tournament, not on the scoresheet, but by being a relentless, physical forechecker and by dropping the gloves with Blues prospect Brady Lyle. Minten had just decked Jake Neighbors into the boards and Lyle, 4 years Minten's senior and 30 pounds heavier, took exception.
Minten's physicality and willingness to drop the gloves with a larger, more experienced opponent seems to have made quite the impression on the Leafs brass, as he has been paired up with Wayne Simmonds and Kyle Clifford on a line at training camp. The Leafs appear to be knocking on a very specific door with Minten. If I didn't know better, I'd say they were trying to mould him into their next Nazem Kadri. A skilled 3C who can get under opponents skin and won't back down when challenged. If that is indeed what the Leafs are doing, I like it a lot!
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