It might seem that the NHL Entry Draft hasn’t been a particularly important building tool for the Toronto Maple Leafs. The club has only held onto its first-round pick in two of the last six drafts and likely won’t have a first-rounder again until 2028. Instead, management has solidified the team by adding win-now players through free agency and acquiring players using draft capital and other future assets in trades, as is typically the case for Stanley Cup contenders.
However, the Maple Leafs also have an impressive track record at the draft table. While they have been boosted by key free agent acquisitions like John Tavares, Anthony Stolarz and Chris Tanev, and by trade additions like Jake McCabe and Scott Laughton, the draft has formed the core of this group. That homegrown foundation of talent is now standing tall in the 2025 Stanley Cup Playoffs.
We all know the Maple Leafs’ “Core Four” of Tavares, Auston Matthews, Mitch Marner and William Nylander. However, the foundational group that was drafted when the franchise was at a low point and helped them grow into perennial contenders doesn’t include Tavares but rather Toronto’s longest-tenured player, Morgan Rielly.
Although the Maple Leafs’ core has been criticized for their playoff failures of the past decade, it should be acknowledged and celebrated that the organization managed to hit on every one of their high draft choices to reach this point. Between 2012 and 2016, Toronto held four top-eight selections and made the most of them with the four aforementioned players.
Rielly was the fifth overall pick in the 2012 Draft, selected after Nail Yakupov, Ryan Murray, Alex Galchenyuk and Griffin Reinhart, and has since played more games (873) than any other player in that year’s class (he also ranks fourth in points despite being a defenceman). Although the 31-year-old took plenty of criticism for a challenging 2024-25 regular season, he has caught fire in the playoffs with three goals and six points in eight games.
The forever-linked Nylander, Marner and Matthews were taken in consecutive drafts (2014 to 2016) and rank among the best players in the game, the cream of the crop of their draft classes. Nylander was selected eighth in 2014 following a trio of notable draft flops (Michael Dal Colle, Jake Virtanen and Haydn Fleury) and now ranks fifth in points amidst a talented class that includes Leon Draisaitl and David Pastrnak. In the postseason, he leads the club with six goals and 13 points in eight games.
One year later, Marner joined the fold, being drafted fourth overall from the Ontario Hockey League’s London Knights. While he hasn’t quite kept up with the top selection in 2015 (that would be Connor McDavid), he ranks second in scoring, ahead of Mikko Rantanen, Sebastian Aho and Jack Eichel. He is also fresh off an eventful few days that included becoming a dad, celebrating his birthday and notching the game-winner in Game 2.
The organization got real value out of their No. 1 overall selection in 2016, as Matthews comfortably leads his draft class in scoring while emerging as one of the game’s top goal scorers.
Finding difference-makers with top-10 draft choices is commendable, but also expected. Less expected, however, is hitting on later picks. The Maple Leafs have continued to find contributors even without the benefit of high picks.
First and foremost, selecting Matthew Knies with the 57th overall pick in the 2021 Draft is a decision that looks better and better by the day. Since finishing his college career at the University of Minnesota, he has made an impact with the Maple Leafs as a speedy, physical force in the top-six. The 22-year-old ranks sixth in career goals (44) and ninth in points (94) among his draft class and has stood out in the postseason, quickly developing a reputation as a clutch playoff force with seven goals and 12 points in 22 postseason games.
While Knies is the only star-calibre player on the current roster who has cemented himself as a draft steal beyond the first round, he isn’t the only later pick playing a key role on the team. Joseph Woll (62nd overall in 2016) was thrust into the starter’s net for the first time since April 17 on Wednesday, in light of Stolarz’s head injury and delivered a critical Game 2 victory. Depending on the status of Stolarz, Woll may loom as Toronto’s most important player as the series shifts to Florida.
Helping the cause in front of Woll is Pontus Holmberg (156th overall in 2018), who has provided some critical versatility while playing up and down the lineup. Nicholas Robertson (53rd overall in 2019) has been relegated to the press box through most of the playoff run, but offers some insurance upfront coming off a 15-goal season. Finally, the Maple Leafs have Dennis Hildeby (112nd overall in 2022) on hand should any further netminding injuries arise.
Beyond draftees that have remained with the Maple Leafs organization, there is a veritable treasure trove of intriguing draft finds that have passed through the organization. Nazem Kadri, Luke Schenn, Connor Brown, Carter Verhaeghe, Dakota Joshua, Pierre Engvall, Travis Dermott, Timothy Liljegren, Rasmus Sandin and Sean Durzi are among the many players finding success elsewhere after being brought into the league by Toronto. More recently, prospects like Fraser Minten and Nikita Grebenkin have demonstrated enough promising growth to ultimately serve as key trade tools that helped to land Laughton and Brandon Carlo.
The draft is a viable, common roster-building approach that can breed success. However, it’s not necessarily the predominant path for every NHL franchise. Case in point, the Panthers. While five of Toronto’s top six scorers in both the regular season and the playoffs were drafted by the team, just two of Florida’s top 10 playoff scorers (Anton Lundell and Aleksander Barkov) came to them through the draft.
Sure, the Panthers front office deserves plenty of credit for a series of savvy trades that have landed them Matthew Tkachuk, Sam Bennett and Sam Reinhart, but they’ve struggled to keep their picks in-house. For every Lundell, Barkov or Aaron Ekblad, there are more cases of outgoing draftees, such as Zach Hyman, Lawson Crouse, Jonathan Huberdeau and Mackenzie Weegar, or draft busts, such as Grigori Denisenko and Spencer Knight. Florida also hasn’t made a first-round selection since 2021.
There is no one right or wrong way to build a roster, but it speaks to a well-managed organization to select the right players and then have the proper structure in place to effectively develop their game along the way. Now, the Maple Leafs get to reap the benefits of their developmental success stories. Nylander, Marner, Knies, and, to an admittedly lesser extent at this point, Matthews are anchoring the club’s playoff surge, with Woll now taking over responsibilities between the pipes and numerous depth draftees assuming key role-player duties.
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Through much of his time with the New York Rangers, Mika Zibanejad has been too good to be a second-line center, yet not quite a top liner for a contender. Now aging out of his prime, his play has dropped off the past two seasons, only rebounding when moved to the wing next to midseason acquisition J.T. Miller. That presents a problem for New York. The Rangers are not deep down the middle. Moving Zibanejad back to center provides that depth, putting Vincent Trochek back in his appropriate 3C role. But does Zibanejad again suffer without Miller? It also leaves the Blueshirts thin on the right side. Zibanejad can’t play two positions at once and the Rangers cannot rob Peter to pay Paul. There is a solution, however: Anaheim Ducks forward Mason McTavish. Anaheim and New York already have strong front office ties, with a pair of trades in the past eight months. The cross-continental line should be open. McTavish is precisely the player archetype that Rangers general manager Chris Drury has sought in this past year. The 22-year-old possesses good size (6-foot-1, 219 pounds) and plays with a grit that Drury adores. An old-fashioned power forward in the making, McTavish hunts bodies, making life miserable for defenders on the forecheck and finds pockets of space when off the puck, where he unloads a cannon of a shot. An all-situations player, McTavish digs in the corners and is developing nicely as an offensive driver. McTavish is a hard worker who shows leadership traits. New Rangers head coach Mike Sullivan loves to play with speed and relentless pressure, a mantra that suits McTavish down to the ground. For a second-line center, McTavish’s numbers don’t exactly pop off the page, but 52 points (22 goals) in 76 games for a bad Ducks team is nothing to sneeze at. In New York, he would also presumably get to play with Artemi Panarin and Alexis Lafreniere. Given the playmaking ability of those wingers and McTavish’s heavy shot, 30-plus goals could be on the cards. Bleacher Report has stated that the Ducks are unlikely to extend McTavish an offer sheet, instead willing to match whatever offer comes his way. Does that mean he is on the trade block? At the very least it means that Anaheim will likely be willing to listen to offers. That said, it would take an almighty package to pry the former No. 3 pick out of Orange County. The Ducks would rightly command a first-round pick — if not two — and a highly-rated prospect. New York has its own first-rounders in store, as well as a, likely, late first-rounder next year, with second-round picks each year except 2027. Would New York part with a first, a second and a pair of its top prospects? The Rangers are loaded with left wing prospects. Whilst Gabe Perrault is likely off the table, Brennan Othmann, Adam Sykora and Brett Berard should be discussed, as should defenseman E.J. Emery. Would picks and a pair of prospects be enough for Anaheim, though? Here’s a thought experiment: a deal centered around Will Cuylle. As mentioned, the Rangers have a raft of left wingers coming through and Lafreniere is also a natural left winger. Would trading Cuylle for McTavish solve the Rangers' issues at the pivot, allowing Zibanejad to help fix the right-hand side and give the team room to develop more youngsters on the left? Could this solve three issues in one swoop? It would be a, potentially, seismic move, but it might just make sense for both teams, especially if the Ducks are not looking to keep McTavish around long-term. It would complete a remarkable offseason for Drury.
Defensive end is going to be one of the most exciting battles to watch throughout Dallas Cowboys training camp. One of the biggest reasons why is Sam Williams, who is somewhat of an X-factor ahead of the 2025 NFL season. During limited playing time early in his career, Williams displayed dominant play. However, off-the-field trouble and most recently, a season-ending injury in 2024, has kept him from making that next leap. Now, it's unclear where he stands in the Cowboys' depth chart. He's a candidate to start while also being far from a roster lock and he'll have to fight for his spot on the team. To do that, staying on the field will be ideal. That didn't happen on the first practice of camp. According to ESPN's Todd Archer, "it appeared Brian Schottenheimer removed Sam Williams from team drills after he hit RB Phil Mafah hard and blew up TE Tyler Neville on a block in back to back plays." Obviously, it's good to see Williams being physical, which is exactly what head coach Brian Schottenheimer preached ahead of the team's practice, but you want players to be smart about it. Even more so Williams specifically, who has had issues with costly penalties in the past. In 2022, he was called for three unnecessary roughness fouls and in 2023, he was called for four personal fouls. This isn't a big deal, of course, and Schottenheimer might also have been thinking about potential fines for the team with that kind of physicality in a non-padded practice. Deep down, however, I wouldn't be surprised if he loved to see it. As for Williams, I can't blame him for getting excited at the prospect of live contact drills after being away from the football field for so long. He's going to be fun to watch throughout camp. But he also needs to be smart to stay on the field.
The Boston Celtics' priorities were already apparent before making the trades they did. Because they wanted to get under the NBA's second tax apron, the Celtics were willing to downgrade some of their players to get under it. That's why the Celtics traded Jrue Holiday for Anfernee Simons and Kristaps Porzingis for Georges Niang. It is a talent downgrade, but it helped Boston achieve their goals of getting under the second apron, even if those players aren't as good as Holiday or Porzingis. However, those trades only helped Boston get closer to being under the NBA's second tax apron, but it didn't get them under completely. Boston signed a few more players this offseason, including Luka Garza, Josh Minott, and Hugo Gonzalez. While these players are on inexpensive contracts, combined, they are enough to keep the Celtics above the NBA's second tax apron. That's why Boston isn't done making moves. Spotrac's Keith Smith revealed in an interview with a Boston Celtics executive that more trades will follow because they are still above the NBA's second tax apron. “Still figuring it all out. As you’ve noted, we’re still above the second apron. We won’t finish there," the Celtics exec told Smith. As far as how the Celtics will do that is anyone's guess. They may trade Anfernee Simons for someone who makes less than him. They may trade Niang's contract to a team that can absorb it via trade exception. They may even trade Sam Hauser or Payton Pritchard to do it. Regardless, more moves are coming for the Celtics.
One question remains after New Orleans Saints safety Tyrann Mathieu announced his retirement. How long until Canton calls? On Tuesday, the 12-year NFL veteran revealed he was retiring, effective immediately, ending the New Orleans native's legendary football career. In a statement published to social media, the three-time first-team All-Pro wrote, "As I hang up my cleats, I'm filled with gratitude as I close this chapter of my life and officially retire from the game that's shaped me in every way. "From my first snap in college to my final play in the NFL, this journey has been nothing short of a blessing." He's a surefire first-ballot Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame honoree, breaking out while at LSU (2010-11). During his freshman and sophomore seasons, he forced 11 fumbles with eight recoveries, four interceptions and four total touchdowns while finishing fifth in Heisman voting in 2011. Mathieu was dismissed from the team in 2012 after failing multiple drug tests and then was arrested on marijuana charges, but he didn't allow that to define his career. Instead, he carved out what could be considered a Pro Football Hall of Fame resume, too. Mathieu ends his professional career with 838 tackles, 100 passes defended and 36 interceptions. In addition to being named first-team All-Pro three times, he received three Pro Bowl honors and was a member of the Hall of Fame All-2010 Team. Mathieu also won a Super Bowl with the Kansas City Chiefs in February 2020. Per Mathieu's Pro Football Reference's Hall of Fame Monitor score (65.2), he has a below-average case for enshrinement, with the average Hall of Fame defensive back scoring a 96.93. But players have received a gold jacket with worse scores in the PFR metric, including John Lynch, Eric Allen and Dick LeBeau. While he might have to wait past his first ballot to make it into the Hall of Fame, it would be a shame if Mathieu didn't one day receive his flowers. It certainly helps his case that in addition to being one of the greatest safeties of his generation, Mathieu was, by all accounts, just as outstanding off the field. NewOrleans.Football's Nick Underhill and Arizona Cardinals insider Kyle Odegard, who covered Mathieu when he played for the Cardinals, were among the media members to share fond stories about Mathieu. "One of those guys who really respected the job we do and would take the time to explain the game," Underhill shared. "He an all-world talent and the most accessible, genuine, introspective superstar I've ever met," Odegard wrote. It could take longer than five years, but it should surprise no one if one day Mathieu receives Hall of Fame recognition. He is the Honey Badger, after all. He takes what he wants.