Maple Leafs Depth Chart and Pipeline List have been updated

The Leafs have made a couple of trades lately, and of course had some goalie adventures on the waiver wire early this season, so it’s past time to update the depth chart and the pipeline list.

First up is the pipeline. Normally, it’s all players who the Leafs still hold draft rights to but haven’t signed, but since he’ll be in junior hockey for quite a while, I’ve left Semyon Der Arguchintsev on here:

The Pipeline List is available on the web here if that is easier to read.

The bulk of the changes here were just team assignment for some Russian players. The most noticeable thing is the five players whose rights expire next summer.

Martins Dzierkals turned down an AHL deal because he didn’t want any ECHL time, and his chances of ever getting a contract has dwindled to nothing.

Ian Scott is ripping up the WHL, and the only question is why hasn’t he got a contract yet. My bet is it will come right after the WJC.

Fedor Gordeev is hard to judge, seeing as he plays on a very terrible team, but I’m betting he gets offered an AHL deal this summer.

Ryan McGregor seems likely to be a no contract as well, but you never know what a good junior season can do for you.

Dakota Joshua is a total mystery to me, and you’d do better to check in on the North American Prospects report next time to see how he’s doing.

Two other names to watch are the overaged Sean Durzi and Mac Hollowell. Both could be in the AHL next year, even though their rights run to the summer of 2020.

We all thought this year would be the deciding year for Yegor Korshkov, the highest drafted player on this list, but he’s missed almost the entire season so far, so he remains a big question mark still.

The Depth Chart is only players on the Leafs or Marlies on NHL contracts. It is loosely arranged by natural position and depth (yes, I know Ron Hainsey plays his offside). It leans heavily to current NHL-readiness and usage, so you’ll see a few very good, but very young prospects well down the list. There’s too many left wings on the Marlies now, so some of them will play the right side a lot. Most of them seem to switch up sides fairly easily. Trevor Moore is really more of a left wing, but he’s not going to see any time on that side right now.

You can view it on the web here.

This shows the arrival of the two new Marlies on NHL contracts, both left wings, although Carcone plays some centre as well. It also marks the end of the tenure of Josh Leivo and Andrew Nielsen. I shifted the switch-hitting Tyler Ennis to the left, because he seems fixed there now with Leivo gone, and he is a left shot.

The centre depth is very shallow at the bottom end, and I could make it look better by putting Adam Cracknell in as a centre, but he’s played a lot of wing in the AHL. At some point, the Leafs really do need to get a centre prospect who is a little closer to the NHL than SDA. The wings are all left, which is likely wise, and the right-side defence looks great at the AHL level. The left-side defence in the AHL/press box would all be top four on the Sens.

The goalie situation is what it is at the moment.