Tommy Bleyl is someone who took the QMJHL by storm in 2025-26 and after an impressive 81-point season, Toronto needs to steal him at 59th overall.
The Toronto Maple Leafs need a dynamic puck-moving defender for the future and taking Tommy Bleyl ahead of anyone else would be the shrewdest move for the team come round two. With the 59th overall pick they can make it happen, and it could be the best move they make the entire draft - besides drafting Gavin McKenna.
Bleyl, 18, just came off a stunning season with the Moncton Wildcats. He crushed his career high in points and let it be known it was Bleyl first season in Canadian junior hockey. Bleyl had 81 points (which included 68 assists) and was a 54-point leap from his previous season with the USHS-Prep team (27 points).
Tommy Bleyl's a serious contender as steal of the entire 2026 NHL Draft
He's got some serious quick movement on the ice and his ability to find an open lane is astounding. Head coach Gardner MacDougall was blown away by Bleyl's agility and stick work especially at such a young age:
He's been a revelation for us. He's improved so many segments of his game so quickly. He's got dynamite speedhis offensive instincts are getting better. He's come a long way in a short time. He's got dynamite legs, he's got quick feet and he's got a great mind. He's quick and he's got a good stick. If you've got a good stick, you can get the puck a lot of the time.
The QMJHL awarded him the Émile-Bouchard Trophy as Defenseman of the Year and the Sidney-Crosby Trophy as Rookie of the Year, which is an astounding feat for a player who just came out of high school with no real expectations. To leap 54 points as a defender is beyond staggering; it's if your fourth-line forward scored 25 goals and had 50 points after scoring five points the previous season.
There's a lot of hype surrounding Bleyl although he has committed to both Moncton in 2026-27 as well as Michigan State in 2027-28, so he may not be ready until a few years from now unless he absolutely tears up the QMJHL and NCAA.
Toronto can't wait to get Bleyl and need to trade up to develop their next star defenceman
That sounds like the perfect type of player for the Maple Leafs as part of a rebuilding defensive group.
That part of the team is old and needing a fresh start, and in a few years may have a solid core with Ben Danford, William Villeneuve, Noah Chadwick and Vinny Borgesi. Adding Bleyl into the mix would give them arguably the best offensive player of the bunch in a group already filled with them.
Bleyl's ranked anywhere from 17th to 56th depending on which scouting reviews you're looking at, so it's safe to say that he could go anywhere from the late first round into the early second round. Toronto has the 59th pick, so they may not get a chance at him if other teams also notice how good he's been.
The issue here is that he may not be ready for those years, but if the team takes him and properly develops him (and they have nigh-unlimited resources) then he'll be more than ready to make the jump in a couple years.
A great course of action would be to trade that pick and perhaps someone like Nick Robertson to a team like Calgary, who could offer a straight shot into the early second round and ensure they get a better chance at snagging Bleyl.
It's impossible to pass up the chance to get someone like Bleyl in your system, and if John Chayka wants to make his mark in Toronto then he can do it by making sure he gets one of the steals of the draft to build alongside Gavin McKenna and the rest of the young guns.
Would you want Toronto to trade up to get Tommy Bleyl?
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