When you watch Fraser Minten on the ice, it can be easy to forget that he’s played fewer than 10 NHL games, as the Toronto Maple Leafs’ ascending rookie already looks like a 10-year pro. Minten said he was inspired by the Vancouver Canucks teams of the 2010s, when the club made a run to the Stanley Cup Final, while the Olympics were hosted in his hometown.

So it’s only natural that Minten poked some fun at my line of questioning when discussing if he picked up on any defensive structure from the Alain Vigneault-coached Canucks teams that made five consecutive playoff runs from 2009-2013.

“I was 5, 6 then. I didn’t know what defensive structure was,” Minten said with a laugh after Wednesday’s morning skate. “Maybe subconsciously, not intentionally.”

Minten has been terrific during his call-up to the Maple Leafs and the club can likely get rid of the notion that this ought to be a developmental year for the 20-year-old. He is playing sound hockey in all facets, he’s rarely out of position, and he’s certainly benefitting from Craig Berube’s system, which seems to preach simple concepts of heading north while making simple exits out of the defensive zone.

“His system is honestly really similar to the way my junior coach coached,” Minten said Wednesday morning. “It’s pretty straightforward and more traditional so to speak. Going in straight lines north. There’s not that many moving parts all the time, so it’s easier to jump into as a call-up, or as a guy getting into his first few games. It’s been working recently, and it’s helping us win games.”

Minten submitted an outstanding game against the Nashville Predators on Wednesday, where he registered five shots and seven hits. He was the driver on a line with Nick Robertson and Steven Lorentz that posted a 5-0 shot differential before Minten was moved to the wing on a line with John Tavares and William Nylander.

“He’s a really good player, he checks really hard, he has really good details in his checking game too, which makes him easy to play with,” Minten said of Robertson. “He has lots of speed up the wing, which pushes D back and gives you some time and space. He makes a lot of really good plays, so he’s fun to play with.”

Robertson has struggled to generate meaningful offence throughout the season with two goals in 22 games, but he finished with a team-high 65.4 percent share of the expected goals during Wednesday’s victory and it’s in large part due to the offensive impact Minten has displayed.

“If he can help us, I want him here. That is how I look at it. He is the type of player that we like a lot,” Berube told reporters Thursday.

Minten speaks like a veteran well beyond his years, and during his second stint in the NHL, it’s clear that he feels like he belongs. He was laughing during Wednesday’s morning skate before locking in, he clearly feels more comfortable around the team, and the notion that this was meant to be a developmental year in the AHL isn’t one that he’s bought into.

“Competitiveness is a big thing. If you look at the minor leagues and guys who are NHL players, a lot of times, it boils down to how competitive they are,” Berube said. “There are talented guys in the minors. A lot of the time, they don’t stick in the NHL because I don’t feel they are competitive enough.”

Minten ought to be a staple for the Maple Leafs. He’s on an entry-level contract for the next two seasons and isn’t looking back, he’s looked like one of Toronto’s best 12 forwards and his clear graduation to the NHL may force the Maple Leafs to make a few players expendable, especially if he’s able to generate meaningful secondary offense to go along with his sound hockey intelligence and defensive impact.