Fraser Minten knew where to go.
He knew the right and wrong doors to walk through to get into the Toronto Maple Leafs practice facility. No one needed to tell him where to go for equipment or meals.
Minten, a Vancouver native, trained at the Ford Performance Centre in Etobicoke throughout the summer. It’s the same rink where he practiced during a four-game stint with the Leafs last season and another five games with the Toronto Marlies over the last month. As one of the Leafs’ top prospects, he wanted to make it his home.
“I’ve done it so much, it just feels like my training rink at this point,” Minten said.
And so when Maple Leafs general manager Brad Treliving called Minten on Monday afternoon in the middle of the 20-year-old’s lunch — a healthy lunch for the pro, no doubt — the young centre wasn’t overwhelmed. It’s a call-up he was ready for.
“They believe in me,” Minten said confidently. “That’s why I’m here.”
Injuries and a lack of bottom-six centre options have dictated that the Leafs need their 2022 second-round pick right now. Minten has played some of his best hockey after returning from a high-ankle sprain injury during a rookie tournament game against the Montreal Canadiens on Sept. 15. In his first four AHL games, the Marlies loaded Minten up with top-six minutes alongside talented players like Alex Nylander and Nikita Grebenkin. He notched two goals and four points in five games. Both of his goals had come at five-on-five, an area the Leafs have lacked offensive punch lately.
By bringing up Minten, the Leafs are not rolling the dice with, say, a recently drafted prospect. They are bringing up a known commodity.
Watching Minten in the dressing room during his brief four-game stint to start last season, he looked more like an eager puppy, his smile and wide eyes constant. Sitting in a different corner well over a year later, the differences in attitude and approach were palpable. He spoke slower and more confidently. Minten even looked more chiseled and ready for the rigours of the NHL, too.
“I was getting 20 minutes a night (with the Marlies). When you’re out there every third shift, it’s easy to be in a flow state, mentally,” Minten said. “I feel like I can make an impact.”
So once he hits the ice, what should the Leafs expect from him?
To start, Minten’s focus will likely be a clean, mistake-free game. His defensive acumen is high. He spent much of Tuesday’s practice adhering to often overlooked defensive details, like tying up the stick of heavier defencemen he was matched against or boxing out players accurately.
Minten believes he can quickly adjust to Craig Berube’s plan. Minten himself noted how the Marlies have been playing a similar brand of hockey to the Leafs this season. He also sees similarities to how one of his junior teams, the Kamloops Blazers, played.
“A hard-checking style of hockey. I think it’s something that is a good foundation to have. There are a lot of jobs for people who can do that sort of thing. So it’s something I’ve always been mindful of,” Minten said.
Minten was deployed in a third-line role during Tuesday’s practice between Nick Robertson and Pontus Holmberg. Berube didn’t stuff Minten on the fourth line in what could have been limited responsibility. Fourth-liners Connor Dewar and Steven Lorentz logged just 8:40 and 6:46 of time on ice, respectively, during Saturday’s game against the Edmonton Oilers. Yes, the Leafs were trying to come back in the third period, but the fact that Minten wasn’t deployed on a low usage line suggests there’s a level of trust in his game. In his four NHL games last season, Minten averaged 11:26 TOI. That number should increase in the short term.
Even though Minten is known as a defence-first player, Berube dropping him into the third line suggests the coach also sees him as capable of creating some offence. At this point, any offence Minten can provide will be welcomed. Since the start of November, the Leafs have gotten a total of four five-on-five points — in eight games combined — from Max Domi, Robertson, David Kämpf, Holmberg, Ryan Reaves and Lorentz.
Minten came into this Marlies season with the intent of adding production to his game. He looked up to the task in five AHL games, but the NHL is a different beast. He’ll be matched up against stronger and smarter blueliners than he faced with the Marlies. And so you could make the case that any offence Minten might end up creating should feel like more of a bonus to the Leafs.
But even if offence isn’t what Minten is known for, the fact that he’s getting the nod when the Leafs need him is a plus for the organization as much as it is for him. Minten is going to be a part of the Leafs for the long term.
“We think (Minten) has a great future in front of him,” Treliving said.
Now, Minten wasn’t always noticeable in his four NHL games last season. Yet he’s got new experience under his belt. Minten will inevitably end up being jammed into situations he might not be perfectly suited for throughout his NHL career. The Leafs will ask him to be effective at both ends of the ice. The sooner he can start to experience more ups and downs in his NHL career, the better he’ll be in the long term. The Leafs trusting him in a spot he isn’t necessarily suited for right now is a positive for both the team and the player.
The Leafs will look to Minten to utilize what he’s worked on earlier this season: better protecting the puck close to goal and getting his shot off quicker in dangerous situations around the opposition goal.
“All you can really control is how you compete and the spots that you’re in. You can control working on being ready for a net-front situation or in a rush situation and then feel comfortable in those situations,” Minten said.
In short: Minten understands the assignment. Berube hockey is often about scoring dirty goals. What Minten has going for him right now is how he can quickly digest and replicate coaching instructions.
“(Minten) is having a great start,” Treliving said. “He’s a smart, smart player. What jumps out is his hockey IQ. He talks on the bench like a coach.”
Looking at the big picture, the Leafs turning to Minten at this point in the season could emphasize the need to add a proven NHL centre via trade. There’s a bona fide opportunity for Minten, but there’s also plenty of growth for him, too.
“To be perfectly honest, I would have preferred to leave (Minten) down (with the Marlies) for a little bit longer. You’ve got to be careful, especially with young guys, bumping them up and down,” Treliving said.
For now, Minten will stay up, in a place he feels comfortable in. He might be ahead of schedule for his second NHL tour of duty. The uber-mature Minten has long contested that he would need two years of seasoning in the AHL before becoming an NHL player.
But plans change. And since his NHL debut last season, Minten has changed, too.
“You’re playing in a key situation,” Minten said of himself, before noting that the Golden Knights’ third-line centre is William Karlsson, an established centre. “If you’ve got a matchup like that there’s obviously some opportunity to be a significant difference maker.”
(Top photo: Ray Seebeck / USA Today)
