Leafs make their first training camp cuts

The Toronto Maple Leafs have announced their first official cut of training camp, sending 19 year old defenseman William Villeneuve back to the QMJHL's Saint John Sea Dogs to close out his junior career.

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 The former 4th round pick (122nd overall in 2020) acquitted himself well in the Leafs' Traverse City tournament and should take some good lessons with him to his final year of junior hockey. He got to travel with the team, take in some practices and experience a little taste of life as an NHL player. After back to back impressive seasons in the QMJHL, the Sea Dogs will be relying on Villeneuve to be a leader for them in 2022 as they host the 2022 Memorial Cup. Of course, because Villeneuve will be competing in the Memorial Cup, he will not be eligible to join the Leafs or their AHL affiliate Toronto Marlies for a playoff run next Spring.

As for the rest of the squad, the Leafs will play their annual Blue vs White game on Friday, with more serious cuts expected to be announced afterward. Look for the team to make decisions on professional tryout (PTO) players like Josh Ho-Sang and Nikita Gusev this weekend too. In case you missed it the former Islanders (Ho-Sang) and Devils (Gusev) forwards were given invitations to attend Leafs training camp earlier this month after failing to land standard player contracts as unrestricted free agents.

In Ho-Sang's case, the Leafs are hoping that a "last chance" training camp scenario for him will finally provide him with the motivation that he needs to secure an NHL job. There's never been any question that Ho-Sang has NHL level talent and skill, but the knock on him has always been that he doesn't always play a team game. He has clashed with teammates and coaches at almost every level of his career and he doesn't exactly endear himself to fans when he puts in a lacklustre defensive effort. Again though, his offensive instincts and his skill with the puck in undeniable.

As for Gusev, he has failed to make the impression on the NHL that many felt he would since coming over from the KHL. Sure, he has a decent 16 goal, 44 point season with the Devils under his belt, but his progress has stagnated the past calendar year. He's looking for a fresh start with the Leafs, as well.