One Country Is Secretly Powering the Toronto Maple Leafs' Draft Success
Photo credit: HockeyPatrol
One country has proven to be successful in fostering the Toronto Maple Leafs talent pool thanks to their NHL draft scouting team doing their due diligence.
Over the last decade, the Toronto Maple Leafs draft has gone through various stages and shifts in their philosophy from one era to another.
During the early 2010's, the Leafs were more focused on size and strength for players under head amateur scout Dave Morrison, a focus that changed under the tenure of Kyle Dubas and Wes Clark, leading to more emphasis on skill, regardless of size.
Both strategies had their positives and their negatives. Under the Leafs previous GM's in the early 2010's, specifically Brian Burke and Dave Nonis, they had draft successes in Nazem Kadri and Morgan Rielly, but some busts in Frederik Gauthier and Tyler Biggs, both of whom were drafted partially on size.
Under Dubas, the Leafs had some decent hits on a few undersized players such as Rasmus Sandin and Nick Robertson, but had struggled with depth in their system with many of their smaller players struggling once moving up to the pro level.
Now under Brad Treliving, the shift has returned back to drafting for size and rawness, another correction on the past regime, but for Toronto there's one specific area that has consistently been a positive in their draft history within the last few years.
Toronto Maple Leafs Getting A Major Boost From Swedish Scouting
The Toronto Maple Leafs have gotten very impressive results in their draft scouting out of Sweden, in what has been a strong track record in recent years.
On X, user 'Diordano' pointed out the Leafs recent history of successful Swedes, with current Leafs star William Nylander leading the way for the region for the region.
Having also played over 100 games are Pierre Engvall, Rasmus Sandin, Carl Grundstrom, Timothy Liljegren, Andreas Johnsson, and Pontus Holmberg.
The Leafs have also gotten six games so far out of youngster Dennis Hildeby.
In comparison, the Leafs have struggled to get talent from Finland and Russia, not having drafted a Finn who has played an NHL game over the last decade.
The last Finn to have been drafted by the Toronto Maple Leafs and play a game for the club was Leo Komarov in 2006.
Besides Komarov, the only other drafted Leaf to play games was 2002 pick, Jarkko Immonen who played in eight games. Tuukka Rask, drafted 21st by Toronto, never played for the team.
Interestingly, the Leafs did not draft a Finn from 2007-2016, and have largely ignored the region throughout their history, save for some interest between 2019-2020.
The Leafs had a Finnish-born Director of Amateur Scouting in Ari Vuori from 2016-2022, but the region has not been a focus for Toronto.
Finland has had some powerhouses in the last decade with Mikko Rantanen, Sebastian Aho, Roope Hintz, Miro Heiskanen, & Patrik Laine among the top talents from the region.
Russia is an interesting story as there could be an emergence in Nikita Grebenkin, although not with Toronto but in Philadelphia, but Artur Akhtyamov could become an NHLer as well. Rodion Amirov would potentially be playing in the NHL if not for his tragic passing.
Who To Thank For The Toronto Maple Leafs Swedish Drafting
Two names have been essential for the Leafs being able to draft so well out of Sweden, longtime European Amateur Scout Thommie Bergman and recent scout Christoffer Hedlund, 'Diordano' points them out as well.
Bergman is a hockey lifer who played the game in both Sweden and Europe, and later went into the scouting, having been a scout for Toronto since 2005.
Hedlund on the other hand is less conventional, having been a public scout who wrote for Future Considerations and EliteProspects before jumping to the NHL level.
Both scouts have in recent years shaped out how the Leafs draft from Sweden, the older Bergman a methodical scout who has built decades of experience and personal knowledge, and the younger Hedlund who has a perspective on the modern game.
What The Maple Leafs Swedish Success Means For Their Future
The Toronto Maple Leafs have continued to value Sweden, having last year drafted out of the Swedish junior league, defenseman Victor Johansson and this year Norwegian forward Tinus Luc Koblar.
Johansson, considered a surprise in the fourth round last draft, has emerged as a highly creative player who has grown his game exponentially over the last 12 months, potentially becoming another Bergman success story.
The same will be hoping for his teammate Koblar, who is a raw player who has a lot of puck-moving abilities and can be a skilled player although so far has come just in flashes.
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