Now on the Maple Leafs’ official roster, veteran winger Vinni Lettieri has earned an opportunity with the big club after a majorly clutch Calder Cup run and a red-hot start with the Marlies this season.
With John Tavares sidelined week-to-week, the Maple Leafs have an opening in their top nine and a need to inject some more offensive punch into a forward group that needs a little more from the depth areas of the roster. As we advocated for after last night’s loss to the Islanders, Lettieri’s call-up makes sense and is fully deserved after his contributions to last spring’s Calder Cup championship and his blistering start to the 2026-27 AHL season.
The veteran journeyman, who has 155 games of NHL experience (though none since 2024-25 with the Bruins), was one of the Marlies’ most influential players when the games mattered most last spring. He was their biggest difference-maker offensively, the focal point/triggerman of the power play, and a clutch player who repeatedly delivered in the biggest moments of the postseason.
His 2025-26 regular season wasn’t necessarily his most prolific by his established AHL standards. Lettieri scored 14 goals, an unusually modest total for a player with his shooting ability, but he found another gear when the playoffs arrived.
In the opening game against Rochester, he announced himself with a hat trick and an assist in a 5-0 victory, unleashing three of the big shots that would become a recurring feature of the championship run. It was the first home playoff hat trick by a Marlie since 2019.
Lettieri’s contributions extended well beyond the opening round. In the decisive fifth game against Laval, with the Marlies’ season hanging in the balance, he hammered home his trademark one-timer to score the series-winning goal. It was his fifth goal of the postseason and sent the Marlies onto the next round.
He was equally instrumental in the dramatic series-clinching victory over Cleveland. Trailing 2-1 with five minutes remaining, the Marlies rallied to win on Easton Cowan’s late goal, with Lettieri recording a goal and two assists.
The Marlies went on to capture the Calder Cup, with Lettieri finishing as their leading playoff goal scorer and point producer. The veteran consistently rose to the occasion, combining his high-end AHL finishing ability with the experience, competitiveness, and leadership required to navigate a long, grueling championship run.
The momentum has carried straight into 2026-27. Through five games, Lettieri has already collected nine points. In the Marlies’ early-season comeback victory in Hamilton, he scored twice, including a trademark power-play one-timer from the left circle, before delivering the shootout winner. In another victory over Hamilton, he contributed three assists, extending his point streak to four games.
It’s a continuation of the same offensive confidence, assertiveness, and finishing ability that made him so valuable during the Calder Cup run. Lettieri also made his case for NHL opportunity before the regular season began; Jim Hiller singled him out early in training camp, and the veteran received significant ice time during the preseason, playing over 19 minutes in each of his first two appearances. He generated seven shots across those games and showed a willingness to attack the dangerous areas, even if the production didn’t fully follow.
Now, with Tavares unavailable, the timing makes sense. Bo Groulx has been unable to make much of an impact offensively through six games, recording zero points and just three shots on goal. While Groulx offers positional versatility and some defensive utility, the Leafs have reached a point where they need more from that lineup spot, particularly with Tavares sidelined, further testing the team’s scoring depth.
Lettieri offers a bit of a different dimension. For starters, he’s a right-handed shot. He is a natural shooter who isn’t reluctant to put pucks on net, and his one-timer is a legitimate weapon at any level, one that is worth trying out on PP2.
A 31-year-old, 5-foot-10 forward who isn’t a burner and has spent most of his professional career in the AHL isn’t likely to become a major NHL offensive contributor all of a sudden, but the Leafs could use a shot in the arm from a hungry player who is really feeling it offensively. It’s certainly worth a look.
