It's been a tale of two seasons for Toronto Maple Leafs prospect Harry Nansi, but he's heating up as we are weeks away from playoff hockey.
Owen Sound Attack forward Harry Nansi (34). Credit: Natalie Shaver/OHL ImagesIt’s been a tale of two seasons for Toronto Maple Leafs prospect Harry Nansi. It was a scorching hot start to the year, but that flame fizzled out to ashes, partially due to the extremely poor play by the entire Owen Sound Attack team.
However, as we start to turn our attention to the playoffs, Nansi is igniting that offensive flame once again in preparation for the postseason.
When the Maple Leafs drafted the Nepean, Ontario, native, the consensus was that this was a player whom they may need to be patient with in his development. Now, yes, that’s the case for the majority of prospects, but it’s even more prevalent when you have a player who continues to grow in height while playing major junior hockey.
“From the start of the season last year, I grew an inch and a half, so I just got to get used to my body and coordinate myself more,” said Nansi during the past summer.
Not only is he still developing and rounding out his game, but he’s also having to learn how he can utilize his big frame, and once he’s finally done growing, the muscles will start to pack on. The OHL website has him listed at 6-foot-3. In his OHL draft, he was listed at 6-foot-1.
As mentioned, it was a scorching hot start to the season for Nansi. He, alongside his Attack teammates, opened up the season, raising eyebrows around the league. It appeared that Owen Sound was on the way to being considered contenders, and maybe even buyers at the trade deadline.
In his first 23 games of the season, Nansi recorded nine goals and 25 assists for 34 points, smashing past his season-high totals from last year of 23 points (7 goals, 16 assists).
The skill development had been noticeable in his game. He was hanging onto pucks more, showing confidence in protecting the puck using his length and edgework. That confidence translated into his playmaking ability, which became a real threat, especially on the power play.
The Maple Leafs brass and their fans were ecstatic to see this positive progression, and maybe their 2025 fifth-rounder was on his way to having one of the strongest DY+1 seasons from his class.
Unfortunately, the house started to fall out on the Attack, and that “contender” status quickly evaporated, along with Nansi’s flame.
While the team struggled to string together wins and keep the puck out of their own net, Nansi’s offense cooled off significantly. From Nov. 22 to Jan. 31, he had recorded just one goal and four assists in 24 games. He started the season having not registered a point in five of his first 23 games. In this next 24-game window, he had only recorded points in four games.
Attack GM Dale DeGray had no other choice but to become a seller at the trade deadline. He dealt away the team’s franchise goalie, Carter George, along with their captain, David Bedkowski.
We are in the final three weeks of the regular season, and Owen Sound has taken advantage of some weaker teams in their recent schedule, going 3-0-1-1 in the last five games. Additionally, Nansi is starting to produce once again.
The Maple Leafs prospect currently holds the longest point streak in the league at the time of writing this (11 games). In his last 11 games, he’s put up three goals and 10 assists for 13 points. Additionally, eight of his assists are primary, and he has three goals in his last four games, including a nifty penalty shot goal in his last outing.
Listen, it’s most likely going to be a quick four-and-out for Owen Sound when the playoffs begin, but finishing the season on a strong note for Nansi is exactly what he needs after that midseason lull.
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