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Toronto Drafts Martins Dzierkals in 3rd Round

By Justin Fisher

Jun 27, 2015, 11:34 EDTUpdated:

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Screen cap via Sporta Centrs TV

With their second selection in the third round, the Toronto Maple Leafs have drafted Martins Dzierkals out of HK Riga of the MHL, Russia’s top junior league.

You’re not going to find a whole lot of info on the diminutive Latvian forward online. What we do know is that Dzierkals is a 5’11, 170lb left-handed shot that scored 10 goals and 28 points in 32 games for RIga this year. Internationally, Dzierkals represented Latvia in U18 and U20 tournaments, scoring nine points in six games at the WJC U18 tournament, and another four points in four games at the WJC U20 Division 1 – Group A tournament.

Here’s a brief report from ISS last month which listed Dzierkals as a ‘Riser’…

Skates well with the puck and challenge defensemen with speed and good moves, plays bigger than his size, wants to make the difference, can take a hit to make a play. Exciting player to watch.

Also, ESPN’s Corey Pronman offered his opinion on Toronto’s latest pick…

ISS ranked him 91st in their prospect rankings, while HockeyProspect had Dzierkals all the way down at 195th. He was not ranked at all by NHL Central Scouting.

Other Leafs Picks…

Mitch Marner, 4th Overall

Travis Dermott, 34th Overall

Jeremy Bracco, 61st Overall

Andrew Neilsen, 65th Overall

Martins Dzierkals, 68th Overall

Jesper Lindgren, 95th Overall

Dmytro Timashov, 125th Overall

Stephen Desrocher, 155th Overall

Nikita Korostelev, 185th Overall

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