One of the more underrated strengths of an National Hockey League management team is discovering talent that was passed through seven rounds or more in the NHL Entry Draft. Several NHLers perservered beyond their draft day to become great NHL players. These men include future Hall of Fame goaltenders Ed Belfour and Curtis Joseph, as well as forwards Peter Stastny, Dino Ciccarelli, Adam Oates, Joe Mullen and John Madden, and defencemen Brian Rafalski and Dan Boyle.Toronto Maple Leafs General Manager Brian Burke has gone on record saying he will look to the NCAA and its upcoming free agents to beef up the Leafs prospect pool, and to make up for poor drafting in the past few years. It is hard to develop strong prospects when in 2003 the Leafs first pick was 57th (John Doherty) and in 2004 it was 90th (Justin Pogge). While the jury is still out on Pogge, Doherty has been convicted one on count of failure to develop, and is now a write-off.
With a few top U.S. college players set to become free agents as soon as their teams are eliminated from the final NCAA tournament, Burke has said he will try to get five free agents to sign, with the hopes of at least two becoming big league players. Here is a list of five U.S. college players looking to sign with big league clubs in the near future. Hopefully for Leaf fans, at least one of them ends up in Toronto.
D Matt Gilroy
Boston University
6'2, 205
07/20/84
Matt Gilroy is an interesting player. In 2005, he practically begged the coaching staff at BU to take him as a walk-on. He sat out several games before being inserted as a forward and converted to a defenceman. Sound familiar Leafs fans? Ian White did the same thing for the Blue and White earlier this season, and neither has missed a game ever since. Gilroy is a smooth skating, puck-moving defenceman with a great first pass and point shot. He is a character player, and wears the "C" for his team. With as many as 30 teams interested in the highly touted rearguard, Gilroy recently said "playing for a hockey market like Toronto would be a dream come true." This doesn't mean he is automatically signing with Toronto, but Brian Burke has been to several BU games, and Gilroy, because of his age is not subjected to the maximum rookie salary of $850K. The Leafs have cap space, lots of interest and likely a roster spot for Matt come October.
C Tyler Bozak
University of Denver
6'0, 180
03/19/86
Hailing from Regina, Saskatchewan, Tyler Bozak is likely the second most attractive free-agent behind Gilroy. There is apparently 26 teams interested in putting his name to paper. Bozak is a strong skater, who can play at both ends of the ice. He possess average size, but he's still fairly young and could add some muscle in the coming years. He is a smart player and most feel he could become a serviceable third line centre, with the ability to become a second line centre. Plus, he's from Canada, so he would love to sign with the Leafs, right?
C Christian Hanson
Univeristy of Notre Dame
6'3, 196
03/10/86
From a marketing prospective, Hanson would be a great signing, as he is the son of "Slap Shot" star Dave Hanson, of the "Hanson Brothers." Earlier in the season, Toronto Maple Leaf head coach Ron Wilson even showed how he was good friends with the heavyweight trio. Maybe a match is in the works? Hanson doesn't quite play like his father does, as his highest NCAA PIM total to date is 57. He has all the tools of becoming a power forward in the NHL, with above average size to go along with above average skating. His offensive game needs work, but many feel his is determined enough to become an NHL player. He is also a captain on his team, and another character type player, a theme Burke is trying to create in Toronto.
LW John Mitchell
University of Wisconsin
6'5, 200
08/10/86
That is not a typo. There will be another John Mitchell in the NHL someday soon, and how interesting would it be if he played alongside Toronto's own surprising rookie, John Mitchell. Toss Leaf prospect Dale Mitchell on the right side, and it's an announcer's nightmare. This John Mitchell has the size to be a valuable power forward. In 40 games this season for the NCAA Badgers, Mitchell has 118 PIM. I know a certain Irishman who may be intrigued by this combination of size and toughness. Mitchell has also added 15 goals in those 40 games. There has definitely been interest in Mitchell throughout the league, and he could very well be on Burke's radar.
C MacGregor Sharp
University of Minnesota -Diluth
6'1, 180
10/01/85
First off, MacGregor Sharp is a dynamite name. As far as his play goes, he is considered a tenacious forechecker with a great first stride to enter opposing zones. He played alongside Vancouver Canucks forward Mason Raymond in Alberta, and is compared to having a similar game. He would be extremely valuable as a "plumber" in Burke's bottom six grouping.
The first question most will ask, if "if no one drafted these players, why are they now attractive?" Well, some of these players were as small as 5'9 in their draft year, and some are late bloomers. There is nothing wrong with late bloomers. Ask the New Jersey Devils or Detroit Red Wings if they care that Brian Rafalski took a few extra years to develop his game.
The risk for signing any of these players is extremely low, with the reward being very high. Burke has stated he will try to sign five undrafted college free agents, with the hopes of two becoming players. This mentality will only help the Leafs in future years. Signing a Gilroy or Bozak could potentially be the equivalent of a free first round draft pick. If they don't, then they become minor leaguers and your team is no worse off than they were before they were signed.
