Scouting Report: What the Leafs are getting in prospect Blake Smith

We’ve seen fewer free agent signings out of the CHL this year as many older prospects elect to go the NCAA route instead.

Blake Smith, however, decided to take his game to the next level and carve out a pro career. The Toronto Maple Leafs signed the 20-year-old, left-handed defenseman to a three-year, entry-level contract on Thursday, giving them some extra defensive depth.

Previously undrafted in 2023 and 2024, Smith has ties to many familiar names. His brother, Dalton, was a second-round pick by the Washington Capitals in 2010 and has played pro hockey for over a decade. His father, Derrick Smith, played 10 years in the NHL. More notably, though, his uncles are former NHLers Keith and Wayne Primeau, and his cousin is Montreal Canadiens third-stringer Cayden Primeau.

Can Smith carve out his own NHL path? He sure hopes so. He’s coming off his best OHL season to date, registering 10 goals, 32 points, and 54 penalty minutes with the Flint Firebirds. It was the fourth season of his OHL career after spending a season and a half in Oshawa to kick things off. He’s an Oshawa native, having grown up in the Generals’ AAA system before getting selected by the big team 121st overall in 2020.

His numbers are nothing special for a player his age. But it’s easy to look at his 6-foot-5, 225-pound frame and see what he really brings to the table. He’s strong, and can put guys through the boards and is defensively sound, too. He’s a solid skater for his size, bringing a mix of fluidity and speed that you won’t always find from a player with his makeup. Smith tends to draw players to the perimeter, thinking they can outskate him. But that’s where Smith can close the gap and keep you from getting too close to the inside.

It’s easy to understand why Brad Treliving likes him. His size and physicality is exactly what the Leafs’ GM has been all over in recent years. Some scouts consider him to be one of the tougher players in the OHL. He had a lot to prove to earn a pro contract and made sure to leave nothing on the line from a physical angle. He hits hard and plays hard, and that’s going to make you a popular figure in this organization.

But at the same time, there’s nothing particularly NHL-caliber about his game. He’s not going to outskate most NHL defenders, and he has very limited offensive potential. He has a decent shot, but nothing that separates him from anyone else higher up in Toronto’s pipeline. They’ve got tough guys; they’ve got players who can skate and score, too. In reality, there’s not much offensive upside here, even if there is general pro upside.

Signing Smith is to help build more Toronto Marlies depth, just like they did with John Prokop out of the NCAA. Topi Niemela, Mikko Kokkonen and William Villeneuve are pending RFAs – it’s unclear if any are part of Toronto’s long-term plans at this point. Dakota Mermis and Nicolas Mattinen are both UFAs. Prokop, Cade Webber, Marshall Rifai, Noah Chadwick and Matt Benning are all signed for next year and will likely make up a big portion of the D core.

In Smith’s case, his ELC gives him some extra time to develop and maybe push himself up the pipeline. Many scouts think he’s just an AHLer at best. And that’s fine – you still need those guys. Toronto has always cared about how the Marlies do because building a winning foundation can have some positive, long-term effects.

So, that’s what this is: a signing to boost the team’s defensive depth. You can never have enough of it. If someone like Smith breaks through, that’s great. Treliving clearly cares about making his team’s tougher to play against, and that extends to Coca-Cola Coliseum. You want your AHL team to play a similar style to your NHL team to make any transition easier. If he gets to the NHL – awesome. We’ve seen guys like Rifai beat the odds to get a small taste of the big leagues. If not, no harm done.