Ben Danford is pushing into the Maple Leafs plans and the Marlies coach made that clear
Photo credit: Steven Ellis - Daily Faceoff
Ben Danford is getting closer and closer to making the leap to the NHL and his Marlies head coach just gave him a ringing endorsement ahead of next season.
Ben Danford is Toronto's shutdown defender of the future who is making a strong case to be in the lineup next year. His AHL head coach just gave Danford his seal of approval and although he's only been involved recently - he's made his mark.
Danford, 20, was drafted 31st overall by the Maple Leafs in the 2024 NHL Draft and has made a statement both in junior and at the AHL level. After captaining Oshawa he helped Brantford secure top spot in the OHL although a stunning playoff series loss to Barrie ended his season prematurely.
But now he's helping the Toronto Marlies towards a Calder Cup, and facing elimination on Friday night; the team needs him at his best. Good thing he seems to be at the top of his game according to head coach John Gruden.
Ben Danford gets praise heaped on him by Marlies head coach despite short playoff stint
Gruden was on TSN's First Up on Friday and explained that Danford's growth and maturity in the AHL has been a huge positive and his skillset is already making a difference even if he just slotted into the lineup:
I was fortunate last year in Montreal to see him in the Prospect Showcase. He's growing, he's a big guy, great feet, positionally really sound. But he reminds me of a lot of those smart defencemen who will figure it out.
He's smart, skates well, he looks like he'll be one of those D to play Top 4, munch a bunch of minutes, he knows he's a good PKer and is a good defender; he's not trying to force anything. He's only going to continue to grow and get better.
He's smart, skates well, he looks like he'll be one of those D to play Top 4, munch a bunch of minutes, he knows he's a good PKer and is a good defender; he's not trying to force anything. He's only going to continue to grow and get better.
Danford's defensive game has always been his strong suit but it's great to hear that it sounds like he is able to potentially help with Toronto's transition game given his improvement as a skater and someone who can dictate how the opposition approaches things; he's very cerebral at such young age.
John Chayka can't rush Ben Danford into the NHL but he can't hesitate to debut him either
But that ends up making things a little tough, especially with how much Toronto has invested in the blueline. Jake McCabe, Chris Tanev, and Oliver Ekman-Larsson are all locked down, meanwhile Brandon Carlo may be in the lineup come October. Add in William Villeneuve and presumably one or two other signings to add some puck movement and you have a lot less room for Danford.
However this is a genuinely questionable lineup. There's a lot of injury concerns with Tanev, meanwhile Carlo, McCabe and Ekman-Larsson have all dealt with medium-to-high risk injuries over the past two seasons. Their bodies may not be able to handle things, and the IR is a very likely spot for one or multiple this season.
So it's the perfect chance for Chayka to see what Danford can offer. If he has some injured stay-at-home defenders, why not bring in his prized one from the AHL? It's better to throw him into the fire, and as we've seen in the past with Easton Cowan and Matthew Knies - they can make an impact quickly.
He's not going to get top pairing minutes but he could be someone who finds himself next to Ekman-Larsson who can mentor him, get second unit PK minutes, grow consistently and then be the replacement for Carlo when his contract is up or if he dealt away at the deadline.
Chayka cannot run into the same trend that Brad Treliving and Craig Berube fell into, which was never playing the rookies even if things were hopeless. If there's an opening, you best get a look and see what your top defensive prospect can do; otherwise you're wasting him.
Plus, they don't have to keep him. If he plays a few games and heads back, they don't burn his deal and also give him that first taste of the NHL level; two birds and one stone.
There's hope that Danford can turn into someone who the Maple Leafs can trust to run their backend, and even though he's young, he's hungry and willing to learn. We may be closer to seeing him than we anticipated because he's making himself inevitable every game he plays.
Also read on Hockey Patrol :
Brad Treliving is passing the blame to the Maple Leafs core on his way out the door
Brad Treliving is passing the blame to the Maple Leafs core on his way out the door