Story by
Andre Leal
Sun, July 19, 2026 at 3:56 PM UTC·6 min read
Every season, each team will have a small handful of AHL players get an opportunity in the NHL. It’s often to fill in for an injured player or because they’ve been impressing in the American League and deserve a look in the big league
With the Toronto Maple Leafs’ organization, the situation is a little bit different than usual, considering their AHL affiliate, the Toronto Marlies, is coming off their second Calder Cup championship in franchise history
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Several players from that Marlies team deserve a regular chance with the Maple Leafs. However, GM John Chayka made a considerable splash on July 1, acquiring an abundance of players to fill the NHL roster for 2026-27
The path up to the NHL within the organization for some of those Calder Cup winners isn’t so clear now. But that doesn’t mean a few can’t see some action with the Maple Leafs
This past year, four Marlies players received a notable opportunity with the Maple Leafs. Jacob Quillan, Dakota Mermis, Dennis Hildeby and Bo Groulx all featured in more than 10 NHL games in 2025-26
Quillan played the most, appearing in 23 contests and scoring a goal and two assists. Next is Hildeby, who played 20 games in relief due to the absences of Joseph Woll and Anthony Stolarz, with most of his action coming from November through January
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Groulx was introduced to the Maple Leafs lineup later in the campaign, making his season debut on March 10 and playing 13 games for the club. Mermis was used as an injury replacement throughout the year, playing 11 games for the Leafs, all before Dec. 9
With those numbers from this past year, how much action in the NHL can some of the Marlies’ core players expect for this coming season?
For starters, it certainly won’t be much playing time if the majority of the Maple Leafs roster remains healthy. Chayka’s free agency haul blocks out some opportunity for the impressive AHL champions
With the goaltending, Woll was shipped to the Philadelphia Flyers, and Hildeby to the Tampa Bay Lightning. However, future Hall of Famer Sergei Bobrovsky was added to the mix with a three-year contract
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Therefore, for Akhtyamov to get a stint in the NHL, he’d have to be patient for either an injury or a serious dip in performance from Stolarz or Bobrovsky. And to be fair, that’s very possible
Stolarz has had an injury-riddled career so far and has never played more than 34 games in a single season. Also, Bobrovsky is coming off the worst campaign of his lengthy NHL tenure and will be turning 38 before the next season’s start. So to say Akhtyamov could get 15 to 20 games like Hildeby did last year isn’t the biggest stretch of the imagination
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Then there’s the defense
One thing that sticks out with the Maple Leafs’ defense is Chris Tanev. The veteran blueliner didn’t see a whole lot of action after suffering multiple injuries early in the year. As a result, he only featured in 11 contests for Toronto, so it’ll be interesting to see how he carries himself in 2026-27 as a 36-year-old
Add Tanev’s return to the lineup with the additions of Darren Raddysh and Emil Andrae to the back end this off-season. With that, there’s still Troy Stecher, who was re-signed to a two-year deal, and even Philippe Myers is still a depth piece in the organization
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That leaves scraps for a player like 24-year-old defenseman William Villeneuve. Which is a shame because he finished second in the AHL’s playoff scoring race with 23 points in 24 games. In another situation with another team, Villeneuve would potentially see at least 20 games based on that Calder Cup performance, and still at a relatively young age
Not to mention, 20-year-old Ben Danford has made it clear multiple times that he’s looking to crack the Maple Leafs’ roster out of training camp this fall. That would certainly be a tall task considering the bodies ahead of him on the depth chart
Marlies’ Calder Cup Defenseman Ben Danford Reveals Mark Giordano Advice And His Bold Goal For Maple Leafs Training CampAfter hoisting the Calder Cup with the Marlies, top defensive prospect Ben Danford shares the crucial advice he received from Mark Giordano and why he’s targeting a spot on the Maple Leafs’ opening night roster
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In terms of Toronto’s forward group, Quillan and Groulx would be the obvious candidates to be the first in line for a call-up
Quillan, 24, has shown great signs of growth in the American League this past year, almost reaching a point-per-game average in the regular season. He scored 14 goals and 36 points in 40 appearances with the Marlies. What helps his case even further is his NHL experience, as he spent over a quarter of the NHL regular season with the Leafs
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As for Groulx, he was a pleasant surprise with how quickly he produced offensively for the Maple Leafs when he was called up in March. In his first six games in the NHL, the 26-year-old scored three goals and five points
Unfortunately for those two, the additions of Nick Paul, Colton Sissons, Teddy Blueger, Jack Roslovic and Gavin McKenna hinder the chance of replicating the time they got with the Leafs in 2025-26. This time around, they would be lucky to see more than 10 games, barring a long-term injury to an NHL regular
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