Fraser Minten's Remarkable Journey From Under the Radar Before Training Camp to the Maple Leafs' Opening Night Roster
The Maple Leafs didn't expect their second-round pick to make the team this year, but Fraser Minten's performance at training camp was hard to deny.
Fraser Minten came into his second training camp with the Toronto Maple Leafs to return to his junior team and perform well enough to crack the 2024 Canadian World Juniors roster.
But the 19-year-old exceeded that bar and earned a spot on the Maple Leafs' opening night roster.
"It's the body of work that never took a step backwards," Maple Leafs head coach Sheldon Keefe said of the Kamloops Blazers center. "Because of that, he remained relevant all the way through."
Minten didn't put it into his mind that he had a chance to make the Maple Leafs out of camp until a series of games against the Montreal Canadiens.
"After those games, when I was playing tough matchups and holding my own, I kind of got the inner confidence that it's a possibility," Minten said.
The 6-foot-2 Minten played in six of the team's eight pre-season contests and finished with a goal and three assists. Outside of the points, it was the skills he demonstrated at the center spot that fit in perfectly for a team that was lacking depth at the position.
"The foundation of his game is rooted in competitiveness and intelligence, pro habits and detail," Keefe explained. "Normally kids coming out of junior, you’ve got to spend time to get that into their game. He arrives with that."
On Sunday, Minten got a phone call from Maple Leafs GM Brad Treliving informing him he'd be sticking around. The Vancouver native also forced the Maple Leafs to abandon the experiment of having William Nylander move to center, for now. There's also a desire for the Maple Leafs to carry 21 players on the active roster for opening night on Wednesday against the Canadiens.
On Sunday, the Maple Leafs cleared space by trading Sam Lafferty to the Vancouver Canucks for a fifth-round selection at the 2024 NHL Draft, clearing the player's $1.15 million salary cap hit off the books.
Minten will carry a cap hit of $845,833.
How long will Minten stick around?
The Maple Leafs will take a day-by-day approach to Minten. A nine-game audition makes a lot of sense. As a 19-year-old, Minten wouldn't burn a year of his contract if he plays nine games or less before returning to Kamloops.
Of course, if Minten's performance warrants sticking around, the Leafs won't hesitate to keep the finger off the trigger.
"It’s harder to get here and it’s even harder to stay," Minten said. "I’m was just trying my best to keep it day-by-day I think that’s the best I can do."
Judging by how his peers see him, Minten could be that third-line center the Leafs were hoping for. And he arrived a lot sooner than they expected.
"I know he’s going to be an impactful player for a long time," Maple Leafs captain John Tavares said of Minten. "The things that he asks and that he sees, you can just understand why his game translates really well."
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