Toronto Made a Huge Error Not Drafting This Goaltender in 2017

The Toronto Maple Leafs are the most meme-able team in the NHL, and it is not really close. Hockey's largest market by volume, when Toronto face-plants the hockey world collectively points and laughs. It seems toxic, but really it just comes with the territory.

However, some of the organization's blunders over the years are too laughable to ignore. Trading Tuukka Rask to the Boston Bruins for Andrew Raycroft. 19 years without a playoff series win, 56 without a Stanley Cup. Trading Tyler Seguin-plus for Phil Kessel (although, Kessel balled out in Toronto, so I cannot call that an outright blunder). The Leafs have some bad ones over the years.

Well, you can add one more tactical blunder onto the list: goaltender Jeremy Swayman of the Boston Bruins.

Swayman's recent appearance on Dropping the Gloves revealed that the Leafs had serious interest in him after the two sides had heavy dialogue leading up to the draft.

Just 23, Swayman already has 51 NHL games under his belt, sporting a 2.23 GAA and .920 SV% with a 30-17-3 record. Goalies tend to hit their prime around age 26, so Swayman's future looks very bright at this point.

What makes this pick so detrimental for Toronto is not so much that they did not take Swayman. Rather, it is the player they did take; goaltender Ian Scott, who recently announced his retirement from professional hockey.

As the Maple Leafs charge into 2022-23 with a Matt Murray-Ilya Samsonov tandem, they could have a 23-year old, cost-controlled Jeremy Swayman. Instead, they do not have Swayman and their division rivals will deploy him against the Leafs yet again.

Classic Leafs.

Model: JFresh, TDH

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