Home › Forums › Toronto Maple Leafs › Leafs Draft and Free Agency 2026
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May 28, 2026 at 10:34 am #73612
Mr. Sir
ParticipantWright Montour and 7
for
Woll Rielly and NylanderMay 28, 2026 at 8:13 am #73599senstrolltwo
Participantmost drafts do not have a generational talent. Mcdavid was the last one and he has yet to win a cup.
I think teams can still win a cup with non generational players. just a guessMay 28, 2026 at 1:24 am #73596Unholy_Goalie
ParticipantAlexis Lafreniere was not as highly touted. Many believed that it was a poor draft year. Something like Rielly’s year. This draft seems to have 6 really good players at the top. 3 defensemen, 2 wingers and a center. The Leafs have an important couple of decisions to make. Keep the pick and hope for the best, or trade the pick and draft a defenseman and get another 1st rounder or equivalent in return. Vancouver, Chicago and Calgary seem to be the teams that want to play, so go see what each is willing to give up.
And this year is also a poor draft year in terms of not having a generational talent at #1. I think McKenna scores more than Lafreniere but all the same deficiencies exist. Small, winger, one-way player, no defense, not a franchise or generational talent. Like I said, if McKenna can score in the NHL, he’s another Nylander. We’ve already seen that movie and we see how it ends.
May 27, 2026 at 10:58 pm #73594PrinceLH
ParticipantHabs are overmatched. It should be over in 5. They’ll be downtrodden but have learned what it’ll take to get to the finals. May they fail to do so.
May 27, 2026 at 10:22 pm #73592PrinceLH
ParticipantCongratulations to the Marlies tonight. A 4 -2 win on the road against the Penguins farm team. Lets see if they can keep it going on Friday.
May 27, 2026 at 7:27 pm #73586senstrolltwo
ParticipantAlexis Lafreniere was not as highly touted. Many believed that it was a poor draft year. Something like Rielly’s year. This draft seems to have 6 really good players at the top. 3 defensemen, 2 wingers and a center. The Leafs have an important couple of decisions to make. Keep the pick and hope for the best, or trade the pick and draft a defenseman and get another 1st rounder or equivalent in return. Vancouver, Chicago and Calgary seem to be the teams that want to play, so go see what each is willing to give up.
Lafreniere didn’t score at the level Mckenna did.
Mckenna last WHL season d-1 season he had an NHLe of 57 points, Lafreniere in his same season QMJHL d-1 was 40
huge difference, even in Lafreniere Draft season his NHLe is 50
Its safe to say if Mckenna played last season in the WHL he puts up big numbers, 160 points+ which would be an NHLe of 66May 27, 2026 at 6:49 pm #73585PrinceLH
ParticipantAlexis Lafreniere was not as highly touted. Many believed that it was a poor draft year. Something like Rielly’s year. This draft seems to have 6 really good players at the top. 3 defensemen, 2 wingers and a center. The Leafs have an important couple of decisions to make. Keep the pick and hope for the best, or trade the pick and draft a defenseman and get another 1st rounder or equivalent in return. Vancouver, Chicago and Calgary seem to be the teams that want to play, so go see what each is willing to give up.
May 27, 2026 at 6:43 pm #73583Unholy_Goalie
ParticipantTheScore reporting the Leafs, Sharks and Blackhawks are all willing to trade their 1st round pick.
May 27, 2026 at 6:04 pm #73574Unholy_Goalie
ParticipantYou have to remember, McKenna was a superior talent in junior. He decided to go to the NCAA because he wanted to play against players older than him, that were more polished. He started slow, but turned it on in the second half. He still averaged more than 2 points a game, in a league that’s known for low scoring games. He had an 8 point game in the NCAA, a record that will be hard to break. There’s a reason that many in the know, across the NHL, pick him to be the first overall pick. This is one of these times that you take a player like him and he explodes into a top 10 NHL player going forward. He could also be a 75 point player, which is fine, but not a first overall. A big issue is, do you want to be the GM that passed on this guy and he goes on to set records in points production and wins an Art Ross and the Hart Trophy or the Conn Smythe? It’s a conundrum, but it sure is a good one to have. The alternative was Boston picking at #6. If you watched the final balls dropping at the draft, there was a ball that would have put Winnipeg into the #1 spot but just missed, before #12 ended up in the hopper. If that had happened, Boston would be drafting at #6. It was pure luck and maybe it’s Karma that’s telling them to make that pick. Of course, getting a deal from Vancouver that nets you #3 plus a top end defensive prospect, or another 1st isn’t bad either.
Alexis Lafreniere scored a lot of points in junior. He was 1st overall. Where are the Rangers now? A high scoring junior, small, one-way winger doesn’t change a franchise.
Small, weak, doesn’t play defense, not a generational talent. He’s not winning any Art Ross, Hart or Conn Smythe trophies. Not happening with McDavid, MacKinnon, Celebrini and many other much better, more elite offensive players in the league for the next 10 years. Even if he does score like crazy, his lack of a two-way game and position of being a winger will always hurt his team just like how Tavares and Nylander score but absolutely suck defensively. McKenna is way more likely to be another Nylander than to be any kind of MVP. Nylander is fine as a one-way winger but we’ve seen that movie before in Toronto and it doesn’t end with a Stanley Cup.
Stenberg is a better overall player at #1 and trading down for another 1st and getting a solid RHD top 5 pick is better too. McKenna isn’t the guy that fixes the Leafs franchise. The Leafs need to draft and build a team with winning a Cup in mind. The days of drafting whoever scores the most but loses when it matters should be over.
May 27, 2026 at 5:05 pm #73569PrinceLH
ParticipantYou have to remember, McKenna was a superior talent in junior. He decided to go to the NCAA because he wanted to play against players older than him, that were more polished. He started slow, but turned it on in the second half. He still averaged more than 2 points a game, in a league that’s known for low scoring games. He had an 8 point game in the NCAA, a record that will be hard to break. There’s a reason that many in the know, across the NHL, pick him to be the first overall pick. This is one of these times that you take a player like him and he explodes into a top 10 NHL player going forward. He could also be a 75 point player, which is fine, but not a first overall. A big issue is, do you want to be the GM that passed on this guy and he goes on to set records in points production and wins an Art Ross and the Hart Trophy or the Conn Smythe? It’s a conundrum, but it sure is a good one to have. The alternative was Boston picking at #6. If you watched the final balls dropping at the draft, there was a ball that would have put Winnipeg into the #1 spot but just missed, before #12 ended up in the hopper. If that had happened, Boston would be drafting at #6. It was pure luck and maybe it’s Karma that’s telling them to make that pick. Of course, getting a deal from Vancouver that nets you #3 plus a top end defensive prospect, or another 1st isn’t bad either.
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