For once, Don Cherry actually liked how the Toronto Maple Leafs handled the first round of the NHL Draft.
The broadcasting legend and host of Coach’s Corner had been critical of the Maple Leafs’ organization in recent years for frequently passing on Ontario-born players in the draft, but Cherry praised the Maple Leafs and their selection of London Knights forward Mitch Marner during a series of tweetsSaturday morning.
Cherry was specifically impressed with team president Brendan Shanahan for empowering co-GM Mark Hunter to run the draft. He believes the Leafs added a great player in Marner, despite tweeting earlier in the week that defenceman Noah Hanifin would have been his ideal choice with the No. 4 overall pick.
Early in the 2014-15 season, Cherry called out the Maple Leafs’ previous regime for drafting William Nylander with the eighth overall pick of the 2014 NHL Draft rather than selecting Orangeville, Ont., native Nick Ritchie, the power forward from the Peterborough Petes who went to the Anaheim Ducks at No. 10.
“No one comes here to Toronto so you have to go through the draft,” Cherry said on Coach’s Corner this past October. “They pass Nick Ritchie. He’s 6-foot-3 and 230 pounds. Only three players scored more than this guy. Anaheim picked him up. [GM] Bob Murray picked him. He was the executive of the year. [Ritchie] is tough. He can score. He has beautiful hands.”
