2024 TLN Maple Leafs Prospect Rankings: #19 Nick Abruzzese

The TLN Maple Leafs prospect rankings were compiled by a panel of seven TLN writers, each ranking our top 20 prospects to form a consensus group ranking. 

Rather than hard and fast limits on age or NHL games played to determine “prospect” eligibility, our group decided on a more nuanced approach to include any reasonably young player who is either under contract with the Leafs or on the club’s reserve list, who has not yet established himself as a full-time NHLer.

Selected as a fourth round pick in the 2019 NHL entry draft, Nick Abruzzese is one of those prospects that feels like he’s been part of the organization forever and constantly on the verge of taking the next step into being an NHL regular. Unfortunately, that next step has yet to happen and with Abruzzese recently turning 25 years old, questions on whether it’s ever coming have started to creep in. That reasoning, compared to a season without statistical progress in the AHL is largely responsible for Abreuzzese’s fall to 19th in our rankings, down from 13th last year and 8th the year prior.

The hype around Abruzzese peaked in that 2022 season two years ago, fresh off captaining Harvard and playing for Team USA at the Olympics, Abruzzese went pro and got a cup of coffee at the NHL level with the Leafs, appearing in nine games and managing to score his first NHL goal. Since then, it’s been an unfortunate plateau for the forward, posting nearly identical stats each of the past two seasons with the Toronto Marlies.

Season	Team	League	GP	G	A	TP	PIM
2021-2022	Harvard Univ.	NCAA	28	9	24	33	8
Toronto Maple Leafs	NHL	9	1	0	1	2
USA	OG	4	1	3	4	0
2022-2023	Toronto Maple Leafs	NHL	2	0	2	2	0
Toronto Marlies	AHL	69	16	32	48	18
2023-2024	Toronto Marlies	AHL	71	16	36	52	24

With the Toronto Maple Leafs lacking forward depth, Abruzzese will be given every chance to earn a bottom six roster spot this season. To do so, he’ll need to show he’s taken a big step forward in his offseason training or risk rolling over into becoming a non-prospect AHL regular who only sees NHL time as an emergency call up.

Though some sources have him listed as a centre, Abruzzese has primarily lined up on the wing while part of the Maple Leafs organization, featuring on both the left and right of the Marlies top six for the entirety of this past season. While he did regularly play centre in at Harvard, the organization clearly sees him as a winger going forward.

As a player, Abruzzese’s got some great hands and vision, allowing him to be an excellent playmaker capable of scoring a few goals himself, though it’s his passing that has received the most praise from scouts and coaches alike. While his defensive game has improved since turning pro, the most common knock on his game has been Abruzzese’s skating ability, lacking the kind of high end speed or agility you’d want to see from someone whose ceiling is likely as a bottom six winger. Listed at 5’11 and 180 lbs, he unfortunately also lacks the size and heavy play grit that often allows teams to be more forgiving of a lack of speed.

It will be interesting to see who Abruzzese gets lined up alongside during training camp this year. As one of the Marlies top wingers, he’s the heir apparent to receive a promotion to the Maple Leafs, especially with the team desperately needing an internal boost to its flank positions following the departure of Tyler Bertuzzi and a pending trade request from Nick Robertson. Expect the Maple Leafs coaching staff to put Abruzzese in a position to prove himself capable of producing at an NHL level, it wouldn’t be surprising to see him lineup alongside someone like Fraser Minten, a goalscoring centre that Abruzzese can use as a target man while driving plays in the offensive zone. This is the exact set up the franchise used as the Marlies top line for most of the season, with Abruzzese playing on Logan Shaw’s wing, resulting in Abruzzese leading the team in assists while helping Shaw become the Marlies only 30 goal scorer of the campaign.

An underrated component of Abruzzese’s game is his power play abilities, don’t be surprised if he gets regular reps on the Maple Leafs second power play unit should he crack the roster. Beyond just his excellent passing abilities allowing him to quarterback a powerplay to great effect, Abruzzese’s vision and intelligence also allow him to find open lanes while skating with the man advantage, causing him to be a constant threat to score himself. In each of his two seasons with the Marlies, about a third of his goals have come on the power play. As any penalty killer will tell you, the most threatening powerplay quarterbacks are the ones who are a threat to score themselves, as it forces the opposition to play them tighter and thus opens up those passing lanes.

This upcoming season has all the makings of a make-or-break campaign for Abruzzese. As a third year pro who is now closer to his 30s than his teen years, this is likely the last season he can really be considered a system prospect and it’ll be up to him to showcase that his new role is that of an NHL regular rather than a minor league depth piece.