There was another time when Dakota Joshua was quite high on the Maple Leafs鈥 radar.
They did, after all, draft the power forward in the fifth round in 2014, the same year聽William Nylander聽went eighth overall under former general manager Dave Nonis and chief amateur scout Dave Morrison.
鈥淎 real potential guy,鈥 Morrison said the day they picked Joshua. 鈥淗e鈥檚 very raw in a lot of different ways. He鈥檚 tall, he鈥檚 a very athletic kid, and we saw some flashes of real good skill towards the end of the year. His coaches couldn鈥檛 say enough good things about him.鈥
The potential that scouts saw in the college-bound forward, who attended Leafs development and rookie camps back then, came to fruition. Just not in Toronto.
After four years at Ohio State, Kyle Dubas was running the Leafs and Joshua didn鈥檛 see a fit.
鈥淚t just didn’t work out,鈥 Joshua said Friday at Leafs training camp. 鈥淚 don’t know if I really fit in their plans at the time, and I got that opportunity with St. Louis. I just felt that it was the right move at the time.鈥
Dubas traded his rights to the St. Louis Blues for future considerations, but that’s where the trail runs dry. The deal isn’t even listed in the team鈥檚 media guide. The one that brought him back, however聽鈥 from the Vancouver Canucks for a fourth-round pick in 2028聽鈥 could end up being an important one.
Joshua adds considerable size (six-foot-three, 218 pounds) to a remade third line. Nicolas Roy (six-foot-four, 201 pounds) is the centre.
鈥淚 like the size of聽both of them,鈥 said coach Craig Berube. 鈥淚t’s a line that can go out against any line in the league and hold them down, check them, be physical and hard on them with the size and the strength that they have.鈥
Joshua and Roy have played together since arriving in Toronto, participating in summer skates well before camp at the Ford Performance Centre.
鈥淰ery simple聽and easy to read off of,鈥 the 29-year-old Joshua said of Roy. 鈥淚t makes the job for people around him a lot easier.鈥
They鈥檙e trying to develop the chemistry they鈥檒l need for the 82-game season ahead.
鈥淗e’s the type聽of player I like to play with,鈥 the 28-year-old Roy said of Joshua. 鈥淎 big guy, keep it simple, protect the puck, go to the net. A little bit like my game as well. It’s been fun to play with him even in the little scrimmages we did pre-camp.鈥
They have rookie Easton Cowan (six-foot, 185 pounds) on right wing. Cowan is a long shot to make the team, so Nick Robertson or Max Domi could end up in that position.
鈥淚 like a guy that has the skill to make some plays to these guys, because they have the ability to score some goals,鈥 said Berube. 鈥淓aston is one of those players. He’s a good playmaker. He sees the ice well.鈥
Joshua set a career high聽with 18 goals two seasons ago. Roy 鈥 versatile on offence and defence, like a much taller Alex Kerfoot 鈥斅爃as scored 13 to 15 goals in each of the past four seasons.聽聽
鈥淚 can help out on the faceoff, I can play against the big line in a more defensive game, I can play on the power play,鈥 said Roy, acquired in the Mitch Marner sign-and-trade with the Vegas Golden Knights. 鈥淚’m ready for any situation.鈥
Joshua made the NHL in 2020-21, six years after the Leafs drafted him. He was a valued member of the Canucks for the past three seasons. And now, with no hard feelings, he鈥檚 ready for life in Toronto.
鈥淚t worked out,鈥 said Joshua. 鈥淚鈥檓 happy it has come full circle and I鈥檓 glad to be back, but I can’t say I would have changed it after how it all worked out.鈥
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