Curtis Douglas has a point, but he also isn’t in a position to ignore the obvious. What’s obvious to anyone who sees him on the ice is that he’s a big guy. Standing 6-foot-8 and weighing 238-pounds, he’s hard to miss. Except players on the opposition’s side have to hope he misses them.
If he chose, he could bowl over his opponents quite easily.
Douglas Wants to Be Known for More than His Size
Douglas wants to use his size, but he doesn’t want to “use his size” if that makes sense. During an interview at this week’s Traverse City Prospect tournament, the Toronto-area native (Oakville) noted that “I like to obviously use my size, but I don’t really love it as a staple as being the biggest guy here, I think it kind of slightly puts me in a box.”
In other words, he knows he’s advantaged to have a large frame, but he doesn’t want to just be seen as getting an NHL job because he’s big. It makes sense, but it would seem that he’s also wise not to forget that he’s strong and needs to play that strong game.
On the Maple Leafs’ roster right now, Pierre Engvall (who’s shown on the feature photo because of his comparison to Douglas) seemed to have taken advantage of his size when he played for the Toronto Marlies in the AHL but seemed to forget to play that same physical game when he got to the NHL. As a result, it’s taken him a couple of seasons to finally get his game together.
When Douglas Reaches the NHL, He’ll Be the Biggest Forward Ever to Suit Up
When (not if) Douglass reaches the NHL, he’d become the biggest forward ever to skate on NHL ice. Thus far, the biggest NHL forward was Brian Boyle at 6-foot-7. But size alone won’t get him the job, as Douglas knows.
He needs to be quick enough to keep up with the play. Even with size and skills, the game is getting faster. And, speed and skill both go a long way toward NHL success. Fortunately, Douglas has shown a measure of both skill and physicality to help create space for his teammates. He’s already done so during the Traverse City tournament this past week.
But he does need to work a bit on his speed.
Douglas Is Emerging as a Possibility for the Maple Leafs’ Roster, Perhaps Soon
There’s a chance that Douglas is destined to become the Maple Leafs’ fourth-line center of the future. But It’s taken him some time to progress this far.
Douglas was drafted by the Dallas Stars during the fourth round of the 2018 NHL Entry Draft (106th overall). But he didn’t sign with the Stars after finishing his last two OHL seasons with the Windsor Spitfires. But even in junior hockey, he could score. He had 57 goals and 56 assists (for 113 points) in 118 games.
Douglas kicked around quite a bit, even headed to Austria to play. But, during last season with the Marlies, he really began to put it all together. There he scored 13 goals and added 21 assists (for 34 Points) in 67 games.
What Do the Maple Leafs See in Douglas?
The Maple Leafs believe Douglas can become a strong physical player who has the skill and speed to keep up with the game. He’s started to improve his skating; and, he’s always had a bit of a scoring touch. On top of that, he’s able to win his share of faceoffs.
Fans should look for Douglas to stay with the Marlies most of this season. There he can practice all those other attributes (in addition to his size). Should he continue to improve, he should become a fixture on the Maple Leafs’ roster.
It just seems to be a question of when.
More must-reads: