We collected all the NHL contracted players into a depth chart, mostly to note how shallow it is in places. You can find that chart, which we will try to keep updated, in our And Now You Know section.
For the rest of the Leafs draft picks in the system, the rotating set of players that either become Leafs or go off to live their lives, this is the chart to track them all.
Since this is first posted just before June, some assumptions had to be made. College players that aren’t at graduation age are assumed to be going back to the same school. CHL players are assumed to be returning to their teams unless they have aged out or would be overagers. Europeans are listed as per their actual contract status.
Wingers who play both sides are given a designation by their handedness.
Two players who have signed AHL deals with the Marlies are included, even though they have sidestepped out of the regular pipeline. Fabrice Herzog’s rights expire in a few days, so he is not included, since he is firmly ensconced in the Swiss league.
Toronto Maple Leafs Pipeline 2017
| Name | Birthdate | Pos | 2016/2017 Team | 2017/2018 Team | Rights Expire |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Keaton Middleton | February 10, 1998 | D | Saginaw Spirit, OHL | Saginaw Spirit, OHL | June 1, 2018 |
| Vladimir Bobylev | April 18, 1997 | C | Vicoria Royals, WHL | Vicoria Royals, WHL | June 1, 2018 |
| Nicolas Mattinen | March 5, 1998 | D | London Knights, OHL | London Knights, OHL | June 1, 2018 |
| Pierre Engvall | May 31, 1996 | LW | Mora IK, Allsvenskan | HV71, SHL | June 1, 2018 |
| J.J. Piccinich | June 12, 1996 | RW | London Knights, OHL | Toronto Marlies, AHL | June 1, 2018 |
| Nolan Vesey | March 28, 1995 | LW | U. of Maine, NCAA | U. of Maine, NCAA | August 15, 2018 |
| Martins Dzierkals | April 4, 1997 | LW | R-N Huskies, QMJHL | Toronto Marlies, AHL | June 1, 2019 |
| Jesper Lindgren | May 19, 1997 | D | MODO, Allsvenskan | HPK, Liiga | June 1, 2019 |
| Ian Scott | January 11, 1999 | G | Prince Albert Raiders, WHL | Prince Albert Raiders, WHL | June 1, 2019 |
| Fedor Gordeev | January 27, 1999 | D | Flint Firebirds, OHL | Flint Firebirds, OHL | June 1, 2019 |
| Ryan McGregor | January 29, 1999 | C/LW | Sarnia Sting, OHL | Sarnia Sting, OHL | June 1, 2019 |
| Eemeli Räsänen | April 6, 1999 | D | Kingston Frontenacs, OHL | Kingston Frontenacs, OHL | June 1, 2019 |
| Dakota Joshua | May 15, 1996 | C | Ohio State, NCAA | Ohio State, NCAA | August 15, 2019 |
| Joseph Woll | July 12, 1998 | G | Boston College, NCAA | Boston College, NCAA | August 15, 2020 |
| J.D. Greenway | April 27, 1998 | D | U. of Wisconsin, NCAA | U. of Wisconsin, NCAA | August 15, 2020 |
| Ryan O'Connell | April 25, 1999 | D | St. Andrew's College, CAHS | Penticten Vees, BCHL | August 15, 2022 |
| Yegor Korshkov | July 10, 1996 | RW | Lokomotiv, KHL | Lokomotiv, KHL | Indefinite |
| Nikolai Chebykin | August 1, 1997 | LW | Dynamo Moscow, KHL, VHL | SKA-Neva St. Petersburg, VHL | Indefinite |
| Vladislav Kara | April 20, 1998 | C | Irbis Kazan, MHL | MHL/VHL | Indefinite |
This isn’t a lot of players, and to some extent, that’s because the Leafs have signed a lot of ELCs in the last couple of years. It’s also because once you get back beyond 2015, the Leafs had very few draft picks.
Assuming none of the picks for the 2017 draft are traded the Leafs will have seven more names to add to this list. Two will likely be gone, as both Korostelev and Desrocher must be signed by June 1 or the Leafs lose their rights.
Now that we have the list, it’s up to you to rank them if you want to, or to decide if you think they even should be signed.
UPDATED as of June 1.
