Draft could be fast track to improving Leafs defensive depth

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This weekend’s NHL draft is the one time of year the Maple Leafs might upgrade their shallow blueline pool without the sacrifice of a trade or committing even more precious cap space to a free agent. 

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But when they pick at 23rd on Friday night, who still will be available if all the best horses will have left the barn and will they move for a forward?

Wes Clark, the club’s director of amateur scouting, addressed the media on Wednesday night and was asked if Brad Treliving, a year into being general manager, has prioritized size on defence. 

“We’ve never targeted small defencemen,” Clark replied. “In a perfect world, they’re all big, fast, strong, competitive, offensive, defensive and — if all things equal out — you have to take the bigger player.” 

With only three picks last year, Clark and his staff wisely tabbed London Knights forward Easton Cowan at 28th overall and saw him blossom into the Ontario Hockey League’s most valuable player.

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After Providence College centre Hudson Malinoski came 6-foot-4 Lethbridge defenceman Noah Chadwick at 185th, who excelled in 2023-24 and got into a late-season game with the AHL Marlies. 

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Before that, it’s back to 2020 when Toronto last had a full slate of picks, among them six-foot Finnish defencemen Topi Niemela, who will push for a spot at camp this September, and 6-foot-2 QMJHLer William Villeneuve, coming into his third AHL year.

The Leafs have already looked at Norwegian Stian Solberg, taking him from the scouting combine in Buffalo earlier this month with a group of prospects to a private workout at the Ford Centre practice facility. 

“You get to know the kids better, get our medical team to look at them,” Clark said. “Sometimes it’s better to spend a little extra time with guys.” 

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But the 6-foot-2 Solberg is making so much of an impression on league scouts the past few weeks that there’s a good chance he goes much higher than 23rd.

Brandon’s big Charlie Elick is in the same category. Adam Jiricek is coming off a surgically repaired knee after an injury suffered at the world junior tournament while playing for the Czechia that his still kept him off skates, but there’s interest from St. Louis, which picks 16th.

Clark added the Leafs aren’t resting on their Cowan coup.

“We had high expectations, but everything he did was on Easton. You guys thought we reached for him, but we had a process we stick to — don’t let the outside noise affect what we do,” Clark said.

At this stage, the Leafs don’t own picks in the second and third rounds on Saturday, the price for trades yet to get them past the second round of the playoffs. Treliving has spoken of retrieving some picks if possible. 

“The more bullets the better, it doesn’t matter who you like,” Clark said. “We can’t predict the future. We choose who we like and the more bullets, the better situation you’re in.” 

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