Does Fraser Minten have a chance to stick with the Maple Leafs?

Ryan Reaves , the oldest player on the Maple Leafs , is doing everything he can to distract John Tavares .

Tavares is doing his post-game meet-up with the media on Monday night.

Reaves, dressed in a suit and standing just outside the scrum after serving the final game of his five-game suspension, is jumping up and down giggling.

Advertisement Fraser Minten , the youngest player on the Leafs, has just completed his own post-game interview with Amazon.

Arriving back at his dressing room stall, he looks over his shoulder at Reaves and simply grins.

Minten just seems older than he is.

I was just talking to ( Anthony Stolarz ) about him, Steven Lorentz tells me, waiting half a beat for Minten, still within earshot, to exit the dressing room area.

For such a young kid, hes so smart.

Hes in the right spots.

He plays like hes been around for a handful of years.

Its nice to see.

Hes not the flashiest player.

Hes not dipsy-dangling.

He just makes the right plays.

Reminded that Minten is only 20, Lorentz responds emphatically, Its insane.

I was in the East Coast (Hockey League) grinding it out when I was his age.

And now hes putting up goals in the NHL .

They called, Mints answered pic.twitter.com/hZ4ot8IjYH Toronto Maple Leafs (@MapleLeafs) December 3, 2024 Minten scored for the second time in five games against Chicago .

He has points in four of his five games this season and seems to be quickly gaining the trust of his head coach, Craig Berube.

Very good, Berube said, when asked about Mintens 13-minute Monday-night outing.

Very good, all around.

Hes getting more comfortable, I think, up here in the NHL, the Leafs coach added.

Which begs the question: Does Minten actually have a chance to stick with the Leafs all season? Likely no, but it kinda depends.

The underlying stuff for Minten so far isnt great.

Its about what you might expect for such a young player, with so little experience, not just in the NHL but the AHL; Minten has played only five games for the Marlies.

Hes being asked to step right in at centre too, which is all the more challenging and demanding.

Shot attempts are 66-31 for the opposition in Mintens five-on-five minutes, which speaks to a lot of time spent in the defensive zone.

The Leafs have been outshot 29-19 in those minutes and outchanced in high-danger spots 16-6.

Advertisement Shot attempts were 16-5 for Chicago in Mintens minutes on Monday night.

Mintens expected goals mark so far is about 33 percent.

Which points toward a player who isnt ready for the NHL.

Yet theres some encouraging stuff in there too.

On the road in Florida and Tampa, the Leafs were basically even in shots and attempts when Minten was out there.

Even against Chicago, shots were only 6-4 for the road team when Minten wasnt out there, and he didnt draw a single offensive-zone faceoff.

And overall, the Leafs have actually outscored teams 3-1 in his 56.5 five-on-five minutes partly a product, obviously, of goaltending and shooting luck.

Minten has also been playing third-line centre with a relatively inexperienced bunch, minus Lorentz.

His linemates have included Nick Robertson, Alex Nylander and Nikita Grebenkin .

Increase the talent around him and maybe all those indicators will perk up.

All the more so, potentially, as Minten continues to gain experience.

His mind for the game is clearly advanced.

I think its something you have or you dont, and he definitely has it, Lorentz said.

A guy like that, for having that at such a young age I wasnt even close to where he was at that age.

For a young guy, hes pretty poised, Lorentz went on.

Hes just a good western Canadian kid.

You dont meet too many bad ones of those.

Lorentz described his much younger teammate, a B.C.

native, as an easy guy to play with because you know where hes gonna be.

And (hes) willing to learn, too, Lorentz said.

I give him advice and hes not afraid to say whats on his mind too.

Lorentz says his advice mostly boils down to tips on playing centre in the NHL.

Its not easy to play centre in this league.

You gotta be very responsible.

He is, Lorentz said.

And hell come to me with questions, just where to be in the D-zone, switches, and stuff like that.

The game happens so fast.

Hes like a sponge.

He just absorbs it.

Advertisement Added Berube: He talks like a vet on the bench.

Hes already got that mindset and mentality.

Hes not a guy you gotta really teach a whole lot to.

He needs reps.

Because he understands the game, he understands the systems very well, and has a very good hockey IQ.

But is he ready to play in the NHL full-time? The Leafs can simply watch and wait.

Injuries to Max Domi and David Kampf opened up a spot for Minten.

And while Domi may return soon, the Leafs dont have to put him back in the middle.

(They will have to clear a spot for him, though.) They might even stick him on Mintens wing.

Theyve also seen playing Domi and Pontus Holmberg in the middle of the third line comes with limitations (offensive for Holmberg, defensive for Domi).

Minten might be able to strike a better balance, even as the offence eventually slows.

Theres also no need to decide right now.

The Leafs can give this a longer look in the coming weeks until, or rather if, his roster spot is required as others trickle back from injuries.

Just to see.

This team knows it needs a centre and would like to add one.

But a move like that is unlikely to come soon.

So why not explore it further? At worst, Minten gains some more experience, returns to the Marlies and maybe helps the NHL club later on if needed.

At best, albeit still unlikely, Minten proves to be a solution (in which case, someone else will have to disappear when, or if, that roster spot is needed).

Hes winning more and more fans every game.

Said Lorentz: Im pulling for him all the time.

Stats and research courtesy of Natural Stat Trick and Hockey Reference (Top photo: John E.

Sokolowski / Imagn Images).

This article has been shared from the original article on theathleticuk, here is the link to the original article.