All the attention was on Gavin McKenna during the team's development camp scrimmage but it was Kieran Cebrian who stole the show - and scored twice on the #1 pick.
On Saturday the Toronto Maple Leafs held their first development camp scrimmage as they started to test the waters on some of their top prospects like Tinus Luc Koblar, Harry Nansi, Ethan MacKenzie and of course, Gavin McKenna.
The #1 overall pick was a lightning bolt throughout, and had some serious glimpses of the creativity we expected to see, however he was under the spotlight for a completely different reason - the fact he got scored on twice by a relative unknown.
Kieran Cebrian decided to stand in the spotlight in the first dev camp scrimmage
Kieran Cebrian, a player who was a camp invitee this season absolutely came in with a chip on his shoulder as he scored not once but twice against the McKenna line. That line mind you also featured highly touted prospect Koblar up the middle and rising star Harry Nansi flanking the wing.
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So the fact the Denver University product managed to score against some serious competition is nothing to be overlooked, and he looked really comfortable out there with everyone:
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Cebrian used all of his frame to crash the net and put the puck in to give the Blue side a hefty advantage. He's 6-foot-2 and nearly 200 pounds so he's not a light guy, and there are some serious shades of a Bobby McMann-esque player who can be big, crash the net and does the little things right.
He played his time out in Denver and would be a great fit in the AHL as he builds up his resume. The 23-year old had 45 points in 113 games to go along with a plus-45 rating, and 64 PIM and also won an NCAA Championship with them this past season.
Cebrian won't immediately fight for a roster spot clearly, but he would make for a great AHL prospect who can grow professionally and be one of the guys Toronto puts their stock in later alongside Vinny Borgesi, Hayes Hundley and Brandon Buhr.
It's more so that Cebrian was able to score twice on a line that includes a #1 overall pick, Toronto's top defensive centre prospect and a serious 2C contender in the near future, and a rising up-and-comer who blazed through the junior ranks last year.
That coming from a player who had no real noise is astounding, and his numbers are a bit lower than you'd hope for but he could round out to being a jack of all trades-style player and knows how to win; another championship winner to add to the list.
McKenna was fantastic as was expected, and there are other prospects like Nansi, MacKenzie, Miroslav Holinka and Tyler Hopkins who are all fighting hard to be in the team's plans in the next few years.
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But Cebrian showed that on any given day you can be the best player on the ice, even against the literal best player imaginable and that deserves a look.
Does Kieran Cebrian deserve at least a look in the AHL?
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