Steal alert: Leafs' 6th round pick off to a blistering hot start with his junior club
There were a number of years in which the Leafs seemingly had very few prospects who appeared to be worth reporting on. Now, it seems as though the club just can't stop finding quality prospects in the later rounds of the draft.
In recent years, the Leafs have plucked the likes of Ty Voit (5th round in 2021), Vyacheslav Peksa (6th round in 2021), Nikita Grebyonkin (5th round in 2022), and Brandon Lisowsky (7th round in 2022). Now, the Buds have another prospect in the pipeline who was selected late and is off to a wicked start with the Lethbridge Hurricanes in the WHL.
Noah Chadwick wasn't a player who was on anyone's radar heading into the 2023 NHL Entry Draft. Coming into his draft year, he had posted an unspectacular 5 goals and 20 points in 67 games in Lethbridge. However, this season, the 18-year-old blueliner is off to a sensational start, posting 3 goals and 9 points in his first 9 games of the season.
The 6-foot-4, 200-pound defenseman from Saskatoon, Saskatchewan is a +5, has 24 shots on goal and 8 penalty minutes to begin the season. He's viewed as a bit of a longer-term project, despite his clear cut NHL size. Elite Prospects had this to say about him in their 2023 NHL draft guide:
"Chadwick moves through pass receptions, fakes plays, uses space, looks for teammates around the slot over shooting from the point. If a point shot is the best play, he usually aims for sticks instead of corners. He shows a similar desire to create in transition, forgoing dump-outs for passes through opponents, deceiving if necessary. Defensively, he gets on opponents early and angles them to the outside; his well-timed pokes and stick work make him an effective rush defender."
It's still early, but the Leafs appear to have plucked themselves a bit of a steal in the 6th round in this summer's draft.
| POLL | ||
OCTOBRE 19 | 45 ANSWERS Steal alert: Leafs' 6th round pick off to a blistering hot start with his junior club When do you think Noah Chadwick will make his NHL debut? | ||
| Not for 3 more years at least | 17 | 37.8 % |
| He has the size.. 2 years tops | 13 | 28.9 % |
| He may challenge for a spot next year | 7 | 15.6 % |
| Who? | 8 | 17.8 % |
| List of polls | ||
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