As the Toronto Sun’s Lance Horby reports, highly-regarded Toronto prospect Jeremy Bracco is curiously absent from Leafs’ development camp for the second day in a row with an undisclosed illness. Bracco reported for camp, but has not seen the ice and the team has yet to make an announcement regarding his whereabouts or condition. Bracco, the team’s second-round pick in 2o15, is a candidate to make the Leafs roster for the 2017-18 season, but a development camp appearance would go a long way to securing that spot. After scoring 83 points in 57 games in the OHL last season, Bracco has shown that he can score at a high level. Nevertheless, the undersized winger has a long way to go to prove that he’s NHL-ready and missing valuable time with the Toronto coaches could hinder his chances of making the team.
- Development camp lost another big name today, as goaltender Joseph Woll left with a leg injury. The Leafs’ third-round selection in 2016, the 18-year-old Woll just finished his freshman year at Boston College and is years away from NHL enlistment. However, there will surely be concern over the extent of the injury and the loss of valuable ice time at camp for Toronto’s goalie of the future.
- One player looking to take advantage of some more attention with other big name sidelined is Martins Dzierkals. The 20-year-old winger told Michael Augello that his goal this off-season is to earn a spot in the organization, rather than return to the QMJHL for his overage season. Dzierkals was selected in the third round in 2015 and has been better than a point-per-game scorer for the Rouyn-Noranda Huskies ever since, but still may not be a shoo-in for a roster spot with the AHL’s Marlies. Toronto has 48 players signed out of a possible 50 already and that roster crunch, perhaps even more than Dzierkals’ ability, could keep him in juniors for another year.
Maybe Bracco has abouttogettradeditis. Package him for an upgrade on D.