The Toronto Maple Leafs’ annual rookie tournament has made a move to Traverse City, where the young Leafs will square off against a larger group of rival rookie squads, including St. Louis, Chicago, and Detroit.
This weekend marks the first time second-round 2019 draft selection Nick Robertson will suit up for competitive action in a Leafs jersey along with fellow 2019 picks Mikhail Abramov (F) and Kalle Loponen (D). 2018 selections Semyon Der-Arguchintsev (F), Mac Hollowell (D), Filip Kral (D), and Riley Stotts (F) will also take part in the tournament.
Robertson may spend some time on a line with Der-Arguchintsev this weekend as both are Petes players — although Der-Arguchintsev requested a trade two weeks ago — and have some familiarity with one another from the past three seasons spent in Peterborough.
“Sem and I are pretty close,” said Robertson on Friday. “I have some chemistry with him. [Egor Korshkov] is a big, skilled guy, so it’s not hard to adapt to these skilled players.”
The one player partaking this weekend with a shot at forcing his way into the big-club conversation at camp this Fall is 24-year-old defenseman Teemu Kivihalme, who signed with the Leafs out of SM-Liiga this past offseason after spending a couple of productive seasons in top-level Finnish hockey for Karpat (nine goals, 30 points in 60 regular season games followed by four goals and nine points in 16 playoff games in 2018-19). The Leafs‘ development staff appears to be using this tournament as a chance to start his acclimation process by getting him some competitive reps on a North American ice surface.
Here is the full roster of participants with jersey numbers as well as projected lines and a live stream, with a 6:30 p.m. EST puck drop scheduled for tonight against the Blues’ rookies.
Game Highlights: Leafs 6 vs. Blues 2
Leafs goal scorers: Nick Robertson (2), Colt Conrad, Giorgio Estephan, Teemu Kivihalme, Trey Bradley
Toronto Maple Leafs vs. St Louis Blues – Projected Lines
Forwards
Robertson (#89) – Der-Arguchintsev (#85) – Korshkov (#96)
Abramov (#95) – Stotts (#84) – Conrad (#72)
T. Bradley (#68) – Elynuik (#76) – Brazeau (#79)
Woods (#62) – M. Bradley (#87) – Estephan (#90)
Defensemen
Kivihalme (#45) – Hollowell (#81)
Rubins (#56) – Duszak (#54)
Pepin (#74) – Lindgren (#57)
Goaltenders
Scott (#70)
Zhukov (#80)
Toronto Maple Leafs 2019 Rookie Tournament Roster
| Player | Jersey | Position | Team | Acquired |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Abramov, Mikhail | 95 | F | Victoriaville (QMJHL) | 115th overall (2019) |
| Bradley, Matt | 87 | F | Newfoundland (ECHL) | Signed to AHL Contract |
| Bradley, Trey | 68 | F | Toronto (AHL) / Colorado College (NCAA) | Signed to AHL Contract |
| Brazeau, Justin | 79 | F | North Bay (OHL) | Signed to AHL Contract |
| Carroll, Joe | 71 | F | Sault Ste. Marie (OHL) | Free Agent Invite |
| Conrad, Colt | 72 | F | Toronto (AHL) / Western Michigan U (NCAA) | Signed to AHL Contract |
| Der-Arguchintsev, Semyon | 85 | F | Peterborough (OHL) / Newfoundland (ECHL) | 76th overall (2018) |
| Duszak, Joseph | 54 | D | Toronto (AHL) / Mercyhurst (NCAA) | Signed to NHL Contract |
| Elynuik, Hudson | 76 | F | Toronto (AHL) / Newfoundland (ECHL) | Signed to AHL Contract |
| Estephan, Giorgio | 90 | F | Toronto (AHL) / Newfoundland (ECHL) | Signed to AHL Contract |
| Hamblin, James | 66 | F | Medicine Hat (WHL) | Free Agent Invite |
| Hollowell, Mac | 81 | D | Sault Ste. Marie (OHL) / Toronto (AHL) | 118th overall (2018) |
| Kivihalme, Teemu | 45 | D | Karpat (Liiga) | Signed to NHL Contract |
| Korshkov, Egor | 96 | F | Lokomotiv (KHL) / Toronto (AHL) | 31st overall (2016) |
| Kral, Filip | 82 | D | Spokane (WHL) | 149th overall (2018) |
| Larochelle, Sean | 75 | D | Victoriaville (QMJHL) | Free Agent Invite |
| Lindgren, Jesper | 57 | D | HPK (Liiga) / Toronto (AHL) | 95th overall (2015) |
| Moore, Ryan | 63 | F | Toronto (AHL) / Newfoundland (ECHL) | Signed to AHL Contract |
| Nelson, Josh | 64 | F | London (OHL) | Free Agent Invite |
| Pepin, Marc-Antoine | 74 | D | Thetford (QCHL) / Sherbrooke (QMJHL) / Shawinigan (QMJHL) | Free Agent Invite |
| Robertson, Carter | 78 | D | Owen Sound (OHL) | Free Agent Invite |
| Robertson, Nicholas | 89 | F | Peterborough (OHL) | 53rd overall (2019) |
| Rubins, Kristians | 56 | D | Toronto (AHL) / Newfoundland (ECHL) | Signed to AHL Contract |
| Sapego, Sergei | 73 | D | Prince Albert (WHL) | Signed to AHL Contract |
| Scott, Ian | 70 | G | Prince Albert (WHL) | 110th overall (2017) |
| Simoneau, Xavier | 67 | F | Drummondville (QMJHL) | Free Agent Invite |
| Staios, Nathan | 92 | D | Windsor (OHL) | Free Agent Invite |
| Stotts, Riley | 84 | F | Calgary (WHL) | 83rd overall (2018) |
| Loponen, Kalle | 98 | D | Karpat (SM-Liiga) | 204th overall (2019) |
| Woods, Riley | 62 | F | Spokane (WHL) | Signed to AHL Contract |
| Zhukov, Maksim | 80 | G | Barrie (OHL) / Green Bay (USHL) | Signed to AHL Contract |
