2026 T25U25: Harry Nansi is #16

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Drafted last summer, Harry Nansi is a player who has made some big improvements, but considering his starting point, is that more than just fulfilling the base expectation? The vote – a rise from 19 last year says the latter.

The early scouting on Nansi was all about potential, and the tangible ways he can improve and grow beyond initial expectations if given a long runway. He's done some of that, but the hard reality is he's not the youngest guy anymore, and he hasn't got all the time in the world. Potential has to be realized quickly in this game.

Harry Nansi	Vitals
Age as of July 1	18.81
Position	LW
Height	6'3"
Weight (lbs)	186
Shoots	R
Draft Year	2025
Draft Number	153

One of the reasons why he is considered a genuine prospect who can improve beyond the usual growth curve is that he entered the draft with some space for meaningful physical development. He was not a 5'11" guy who might add 10 pounds and a possibly phantom inch. He had grown taller over the course of junior hockey pre-draft, and his body mass had not caught up.

Let's talk player size! Go to NHL.com and stroll through the handy biographical information for last season's NHL forwards. A good number of them are right at 6'3" tall, but of those, almost all are at or near 200 lbs. The more lithe players who have succeed are Eetu Loustarainen and Martin Necas, players whose skating is clean and fast and plays a big role in their games. At his current listed body mass, Nansi is undersized for his height as a hockey player. And it is very difficult for players in the OHL to gain mass. They play too much and train too little. That said, he's added 20 lbs since he's been in the OHL.

He needs power to overcome some imperfect skating and to give him the ability to become an immovable object that gives players like Dakota Joshua, Nick Paul, Colton Sissons, Brandon Duhaime and Auston Matthews the ability to stake out a spot in front of the net and keep it. This is the same state Tinus Luc Koblar is at as well.

The Player

From the beginning (all of last June) Nansi has been compared to Koblar. It's apt, as they are both tall, lanky, centre/wingers who play with a noticeable commitment and pace. When Koblar was the automatic and expected centre for Gavin McKenna at the development camp this July, Nansi was their winger. They both want to use power to advance their team's cause, maybe more than they currently have, and they want to rev up the pace of play in all ways. The key difference is that Koblar is just a great deal better at the game. He was last summer, and he is improving in the big leaps his age requires of him. Their line at development camp was the runaway obvious serious line, but then it would be, wouldn't it?

For Nansi, as much as he might need a longer runway, the time is now where he needs to start showing the acceleration in his growth to try to catch up to Koblar. Named OHL player of the week in November, he was suddenly getting attention from outside the prospect-aware fans. Points got him noticed. The slump the Owen Sound Attack hit in mid-season turned the attention right away from him. In the spring, he joined the Marlies, but did not play, as was the case with most of the juniors joining the team save Ben Danford who walked onto the defence roster and stayed there. Again, that's the status Nansi has to accelerate towards to be a serious prospect and not just another "better than his draft number" guy.

Making the scouting staff look clever is not the end goal.

His points attracted attention this past season, and as explained by his coach to Steve Dangle, he got some power play time when the Attack were hitting at an unsustainable PP% for a time. Nansi later played as a winger on the third line. This is actually a key part of his game that can see him aiming for a future in a role like some of the players the Leafs just signed. He has a versatile game. He can be the third-best guy on a scoring line or the motor on a shutdown line that also "spreads out the scoring". He can check and he can make plays. This versatility is why he needs the power to back up his off-puck play. His on-puck play is actually pretty good, given his usage in junior.

Nansi, who grew up in Ottawa, spent last summer at the Leafs facility working with the Leafs skating coach, and as detailed in one report, eating the Maple Leafs provided food like the NHLers do, and working out with the NHL trainers. He took about 10 pounds of new muscle back to Owen Sound last year, and it paid off. This is a very early report from Brigstew:

Why do I think [improving his skating is] more important for Nansi than most other players? Because he's already so good in so many areas, but also because of the intelligent and power-style game he plays. He has the great hockey sense to be able to get involved in the play and have an impact, with and without the puck, when his skating was so wonky. Imagine how much better his game will be when his skating helps him get to where he wants to go quicker, and quicker? You can already see the evidence of this with how much better he looks to start this season after just a couple of months working with Toronto's development team this summer.

He was already obviously better early this past season, but he needed at that point to bend the curve up on his offensive abilities. His subsequent power play points created some buzz, but it's going to be his five-on-five game that gets him anywhere. His early season last year was marked by repeated reports of great playmaking and overall hockey intelligence, so all the signs point to a full toolbox.

The mid-season slump his coach characterized as team-wide put the brakes on the points and the excitement, but not his development. He ended up playing primarily as a winger, as he would do at development camp, and perhaps it's time we decide that's his future position permanently.

From development camp this July:

Nansi looked much improved from this time last year, especially with his skating. He looks faster and much sturdier on his feet – no more looking like Bambi out there. He was still pushed off his skates a few times, but only by bigger opponents. Otherwise he was everything he has been but with the dials turned up a bit. He used his strength and positioning to win loose puck battles off faceoffs and along the boards. He showed great composure by making accurate passes into the slot while falling and while being physically checked. His improved skating balance allowed him to carry the puck cleanly on transition and score a goal from the slot. He's just so smart and creative with and without the puck and finds ways to impact the play all over the ice.

There is one source that indicates he's already put on the muscle he needs to add power, and it listing him at 200 lbs. This might be true, as it has been updated several times, but the Leafs list him at 186 for now. We'll find out when the new roster comes out soon, but having the power, learning to use it and building a game that can get him advancement into the AHL and beyond is his next step.

Calling him a long-term project might be a bit misleading because there is a limit on how much time all prospects have. He needs to accelerate his advancement, and so far he has taken advantage of every opportunity for growth that the Leafs are offering him.

The Votes

The votes for Nansi, while the first unanimous choice, cover a wide range reflecting the size of the pool of players who need to take the big leaps he still needs, but also differences in opinion about how likely any of that is.

Voter	Vote
Cathy	16
Species	18
Hound Line	13
Shinson93	20
Cameron	13
Sclodiggity	10
Brian S	10
Svalbard38	12
Zone Entry	22
Hardev	20
Adam	23
Weighted Average	16.09
Highest Vote	10
Lowest Vote	23

I landed right in the middle, and with my increasing focus in voting on dropping players sooner if these leaps don't happen, he's on the cusp. Next year when he will be 20 years old, something impressive needs to have happened because the expectation of OHL play will have risen accordingly.

The Opinions

Shinson93: Nansi has been difficult for me. I tried to watch him, but Owen Sound was just unwatchable for me. I don’t know what they were trying to do, but it didn’t seem like hockey. I can’t tell if he was being asked to do things that he couldn’t or if the coach just didn’t have the horses to put Nansi into a position where he could succeed. Whichever the case, he really struggled being on the ice for a lot of goals against. Hopefully, it was part of learning to play a 200 ft game, but I want to see a lot more from Nansi this season.

Cameron: Last year at the time of the draft, Nansi was my favourite pick by the Leafs. He never quits and he has the talent to go far, and his biggest downside (skating) has improved a lot since he was drafted. Unfortunately, he has had some trouble with consistency (although his team struggled this year, which may have played a bit of a factor). Ultimately, I think this guy is a hidden gem and I personally have him as one of the guys I’m betting on making the leafs eventually (whether that be in 2 years or 7).

Brigstew: Nansi made some big improvements on his game from last year to now, but he still has some ways to go. His skating, balance and strength on his feet got a lot better and that unlocked a lot more for his game. The good news is he’s still quite young, not much older than McKenna or Fedoseyev. So it’s not unreasonable to think he still has more runway than most D+2 guys. The other good news is I think he’s still on track from what I guessed for him last year, as a long term project with those same exciting skills and tools further developed than they were last year. The bad news is that Owen Sound has been kind of a hot mess of a team, and I kind of hope he gets traded to a contender in the second half of the season. I ranked him 10th because I’m still excited by the tools and potential.

Sclodiggity: I’m relatively high on Nansi and I’m not sure why. He has a diverse skillset and likely more offense than his stats would suggest. The way people talk about his work ethic, forechecking, and general motor, is both encouraging and a feel good type of prospect. The length of Pierre Engvall and the tenacity of Zach Hyman? How is that not a good combo? Playing on a poor OHL team has upsides and downsides, so it would be good to see him play in another situation to see how he can leverage/complement stronger linemates.

Svalbard38: The headline with Nansi when we drafted him was “long-term project”, especially considering he was one of the youngest players in his draft class. What I was looking for this past season was for him to improve on his skating, and to show me that he had some tools to build around. That’s what he did. His skating took a noticeable step, and while his season was inconsistent, he had some excellent stretches, good enough to be voted the OHL Western Conference’s most improved player. When we talk about a long-term project, especially at Nansi’s age, I’m willing to forgive an inconsistent season as long as the highs are high. Next year I’d like to see him put together a more consistent campaign, and, like others have suggested, hopefully get traded to a better team.

Hardev: I’m trying to be patient with Nansi. It’s clear he has a long way to go physically, a process of getting stronger that started as soon as he was drafted. It might’ve been mentioned in the article but he’s anywhere between 179 and 201 lbs for a 6’4” player. What I’m trying to be patient about is letting Nansi develop the game his body allows him to play. A season ago in the bottom six, Nansi worked really hard along the boards and as a playmaker. For some reason I saw less of that this past season while he was in the top six when I was hoping to see it more. I wanted to see him challenge the better players in the OHL and win battles. To be fair, I didn’t see much oomph from Owen Sound as a whole at all. The Ottawa 67s, where he now plays, were really tight defensively and run by a coach who knows what he’s doing in Dave Cameron. I hope Nansi learns a lot next season because last year worried me a bit.

What do you think? Not just of his ranking, but where he fits as a player in the wider sense. Is he a sign of clever scouts or does he have an NHL future?

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