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Watching Ben Danford get drafted by the Maple Leafs turned the clock back for Oshawa Generals coach Derek Laxdal on Friday Night at the Sphere in Las Vegas.
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While there was no 240-foot wraparound LED screen at the old Montreal Forum 40 years ago, Laxdal knew the defenceman had the same thrill of getting picked by the team he followed as a kid.
“I had a tear in my eye,” Laxdal told the Sun from Vegas, where Danford was chosen 31st overall after Gens’ winger Beckett Sennecke went third to Anaheim. “To have a childhood dream that gets to a stage like this … I can’t wait to see what Danny does at Leaf development camp and training camp.”
Laxdal, the OHL coach of the year, expects the 6-foot-1, 194-pound Danford to last a lot longer in the NHL than his 51 games as a right winger in the Harold Ballard era. Laxdal knew the Leafs and other teams had an eye on Danford in the scouts’ perch at Tribute Communities Centre.
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“Some players come into junior and think they have to get 100 points or as a defenceman, score 20 goals, to get noticed. At first Ben was like that, but Steve O’Rourke, my associate coach, does a great job with him.”
Danford had one regular season goal, 32 assists and added 10 playoff points in Oshawa’s long run to the OHL final before losing to the London Knights.
“Part of our teaching here is if you embrace who you are, you can be a very good NHL player,” Laxdal said. “He’s a shot blocking, smooth-skating defenceman with a lot of different abilities. He and Beckett, they both have a motor. I agree with (Leafs general manager) Brad Treliving that he’s just scratching the surface of what he can do, to get to that Alex Pietrangelo or Chris Tanev level. If you put him with an offensive defenceman and they could be top four someday.
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“You can sit down and have an adult conversation with Danny. You saw last night with the media interviews he was very genuine.”
That will help Danford deal with the inevitable pressure that comes with life as a Leaf, or even a prospect. Laxdal has no concerns in that area.
“He was under the microscope here every night, as assistant captain, with the role he had and all the scouts being here. It will help that he comes from a great family, like Bennett’s. His Dad was a Leaf fan and I bumped into his grandparents at the hotel and they’re ecstatic about this, too.”
When Laxdal saw the Leafs trade back from 23 to 31, he had an inkling Treliving wanted Danford. Laxdal doesn’t expect he’ll get rushed, even though the Leafs crave a right-handed shot on the blueline ASAP.
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“Danny has to get to development camp, take it all in, get to know how the process works, try and get signed, then come back and focus on the Generals the way Easton Cowan had a great year for London after Leaf camp.”
Laxdal now has five first-rounders to his credit as a junior coach with the Edmonton Oil Kings and Oshawa, with Sennecke chosen one ahead of Kings’ Griffin Reinhart, fourth in 2012.
“The rumours with Bennett I heard were anywhere from 3rd to 10th. But I talked to just about every team who was scouting us. Anaheim was looking for something specific. This was not a fly-by pick. He has a set of skills (68 points in 63 games, 22 more in playoffs) you can’t teach. Wait until he puts on 10 or 15 pounds (to his 6-foot-3 frame), he’ll be an absolute beast.
“Last night really put the cap on an incredible season for Oshawa and we have more guys coming
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