Maple Leafs News & Rumours: Haymes & Blankenburg Battling for a Chance

There’s something interesting happening around the Toronto Maple Leafs as training camp approaches. The big names and big contracts will get most of the attention, as they always do, but some of the more revealing stories are coming from players who aren’t guaranteed anything. They’re the ones arriving at camp knowing they have something to prove.

That makes Luke Haymes and Nick Blankenburg worth watching. One is a young centre trying to turn a brief NHL audition into a permanent opportunity. The other is a smallish defenceman who has spent much of his career proving that being overlooked doesn’t mean being finished. Neither player has a guaranteed spot waiting for them, which may be exactly what makes both stories interesting.

Luke Haymes Has One Big Goal for Maple Leafs Camp

Luke Haymes knows the odds are against him. The Maple Leafs have a crowded forward group, and with a shorter pre-season, there won’t be many opportunities for a prospect to make a strong enough impression to force his way onto the opening-night roster. Haymes isn’t spending much time worrying about the roster math, though. He has a goal written on a Post-It note outside his bedroom door: make the NHL.

The 23-year-old centre gave Toronto a good glimpse of that goal in the prospect challenge opener against the Ottawa Senators. Haymes tied the game by getting to the net and stuffing home a bouncing puck, then played in virtually every situation, including the power play and penalty kill. New Toronto Marlies coach Steve Sullivan called him a 200-foot player, while Haymes said he wanted to show he could score, win faceoffs and be responsible defensively.

Haymes already got a four-game NHL audition last season after a solid first full professional season with the Marlies. Now he wants to turn that brief opportunity into something more permanent. The roster might be stacked against him, but that’s not really his problem. His job is to keep putting good things on tape — and, apparently, keep looking at that Post-It note every morning.

Nick Blankenburg Gets His Own Chance to Prove Himself

There’s something appealing about a professional tryout (PTO). Hockey careers are full of players who were told they were too small, too slow, too old or simply not good enough. A PTO is another door being opened. It doesn’t promise anything. It simply says, “Come in and see what you can do.” That’s what the Maple Leafs are offering Nick Blankenburg.

Blankenburg is 5-foot-9 and 177 pounds, so he has spent much of his hockey life proving that size doesn’t have to determine a player’s career. He’s a right-shot defenceman who can skate, move the puck and make smart decisions under pressure. He isn’t coming to Toronto with a guaranteed job, but that’s part of what makes this interesting. He’s coming to camp with something to prove, and players like that can be fun to watch.

The Maple Leafs also have some practical reasons for bringing him in. Chris Tanev‘s health remains a question mark, and Toronto could use another mobile defenceman who can help move the puck out of trouble. Blankenburg has played both special teams and has a reputation for competing on every shift. More than simple insurance, though, he represents the kind of internal competition that can be useful in training camp. Nothing is guaranteed for him, and that may make every shift matter a little more.

The Maple Leafs don’t need either Haymes or Blankenburg to become a star. They need them to make the decisions around them a little more difficult. That’s what prospects and PTO players are supposed to do: give the coaching staff another option and force established players to keep earning their spots.

Haymes has his Post-It note. Blankenburg has his PTO. Neither knows exactly where the road leads. But both are heading into camp with something valuable — a reason to believe they can still surprise somebody.