By: Clare McManus
The Toronto Maple Leafs made three selections out of the seven rounds in the 2021 NHL draft. While it was only three selections, the Leafs did what they could to make the best out of the picks.
The Leafs first pick came in the second round, selecting Tri-City Storm forward, Matthew Knies, 57th overall.
The six-foot-three, 205 pound forward was born in Phoenix, Arizona, but is also part Slovakian. He spent the early days of his career with the Phoenix Jr. Coyotes AAA.
The University of Minnesota commit played the past two seasons in the USHL with the Tri-City Storm. In 90 USHL games played over two years, Knies posted 31 goals and 56 assists for 87 total points. This year, serving as an assistant captain to the team, Knies finished third on the team in points with a stat-line of 17 goals and 25 assists for 42 points in 44 games.
The 4.25 star rated player for Neutral Zone is “a hardworking forward who has good speed and offensive instincts. He is an energy source for his team and once he got going his team got going. The Minnesota commit is relentless on the forecheck and drives his feet to hunt pucks.” Knies has a very accurate shot that can beat a lot of goaltenders. He displays good skating skills, with average first steep acceleration, but he does have the ability to win foot races to pucks from time to time.
The Leafs second pick of the draft came in the fifth round, 153rd overall, after selecting forward Ty Voit.
Voit is a Pittsburgh, PA native who currently plays for the Sarnia Sting of the OHL. He did not play a full hockey season this year due to Covid, but did appear in the PBHH invitational, scoring a goal and three assists. His point totals from last year with the Sting were eight goals and 20 assists for 28 total points in 49 games, as a rookie in the league.
Ty Voit is currently a 3.75 star rated prospect for Neutral Zone. “He’s a high pace, high motor prospect who is explosive and can pull away from opponents in just a few strides. He can operate at top speed and loves to push the pace, get defenders on their heels and turns and change direction seamlessly…A quick skater, quick handler, quick processor and quick side steps and spin moves to evade pressure and get the puck to scoring areas.”
The Leafs final selection of the draft came in the sixth round, 185th overall, after selecting Russian netminder Vyacheslav Peksa.
The six-foot-two goalie was born in Magnitogorsk, Russia. He spent this past season playing with Irbis Kazan of the MHL, where he appeared in 17 games, posting a 2.57 GAA and a .909 save percentage. Vyacheslav is set to continue playing with the team this upcoming season.
Vyacheslav Peksa was not ranked by Neutral Zone scouts, but according to Neutral Zone’s Ian Moran “Peska is a project who Leaf’s fans probably will not see in North America for a few years. The 2002 played in 17 games for Irbis Kazan last year, posted a .909% with a record of 8-5-2. On tape he is appears to be a very athletic kid. He’s quick laterally and tracks the puck well through screens and traffic. I like how he’s active on dump-ins with out being reckless. And from what I can tell he looks very calm in the net.”
Photo Credit: Dan Hickling/Hickling Images