The Maple Leafs’ Small Defenceman With Something to Prove

There’s a pretty simple way to describe Vincent Borgesi’s hockey career so far: people kept telling him he was too small, and he kept playing anyway. Borgesi is a right-shot defenceman from Philadelphia who stands somewhere around 5-foot-8 or 5-foot-9. He weighs roughly 174 to 185 pounds, depending on which listing you believe. And for three straight drafts, NHL teams looked at him and decided they weren’t interested.

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Northeastern University changed things for Borgesi.

By his senior season in 2025-26, Borgesi was averaging more than 27 minutes a night. In fact, he led the entire country in ice time for the second consecutive season. That’s a lot of responsibility for any defenceman, never mind one who has spent his career being reminded that he’s too small to play the position at the highest level.

He scored 20 points in 36 games that senior season, with five goals and 15 assists. More importantly, he was trusted to do just about everything. He blocked shots, moved the puck, played big minutes and became a leader at Northeastern. He was a Hobey Baker nominee and a Hockey East Second-Team All-Star. He was also named his team’s defensive MVP multiple times.

The Maple Leafs eventually noticed and signed Borgesi to a two-year entry-level contract in March 2026. They also gave him an amateur tryout with the Marlies for the rest of that season. He got into seven games and picked up an assist. That’s obviously a very small sample. Nobody should be drawing grand conclusions from seven AHL games.

Several things make Borgesi interesting.

Borgesi is a good skater, moves the puck well, and has the hockey sense to handle those enormous minutes in college. He can also run a power play at lower levels. The question now is pretty obvious. Can a 5-foot-8 defenceman do the same things against professional players?

That’s where this gets interesting. Borgesi isn’t going to suddenly become a 6-foot-3 bruiser. He’ll have to win with positioning, mobility, anticipation, and decision-making. In other words, he’ll have to be smarter than the guy trying to run him over. But that’s not necessarily a bad formula for a defenceman.

Can Borgesi make an impact in the AHL?

There’s a real chance for Borgesi to establish himself with the Marlies this season. Whether he eventually becomes an NHL defenceman is another question entirely. But that’s why training camp and the AHL season will be worth watching.

He’s already spent years proving that being small doesn’t mean being incapable. Now he gets to find out whether he can prove it again at the professional level.

Related: The McDavid to Maple Leafs Rumour Puts Pressure on Toronto.