The NHLPA Rookie Showcase will take place on Sept. 3 in Virginia and features one rookie representative from each NHL team. Ben Danford, Oshawa Generals defenseman and 2024 first-round pick, will represent the Toronto Maple Leafs. Danford is a 19-year-old captain with high draft pedigree who is expected to help lead one of the strongest Canadian Hockey League teams next season. Easton Cowan was likely not chosen because he attended the event last year and may be ineligible to return. Danford will appear alongside top prospects such as Flames prospect Zayne Parekh and Sharks-bound OHL defenseman Sam Dickinson. The event functions largely as a photoshoot and early sign of the upcoming hockey season.
The young prospect who will be representing the Toronto Maple Leafs at the 2025 NHLPA Rookie Showcase has been chosen and it's no surprise. The full list of prospects and potential NHL rookies who will be participating at the NHLPA's event that gathers a whole lot of the next generation of the league onto one ice surface, was announced on Tuesday. Representative the Maple Leafs is none other than Oshawa Generals defenseman and 2024 first-round pick, Ben Danford.
Danford is a perfectly reasonable pick for whoever gets to decide which prospect is going down south. A defenseman with some high draft pedigree as a former first-round pick and someone who will lead one of the best teams in the entire Canadian Hockey League to potentially more glory this upcoming season -- the 19-year-old will be wearing the Blue and White next week.
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