It's a Hoppy hatty 🐇🎩 Tyler Hopkins has provided half of the @Storm_City offence tonight, thanks to his first hat-trick of the season! #LeafsForever
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Maple Leafs Prospect Roundup: Career night for Hopkins, another suspension for Hlacar
Photo credit: Steven Ellis/The Nation Network
By Nick Richard
Feb 25, 2026, 10:15 ESTUpdated: Feb 25, 2026, 10:09 EST
The Toronto Maple Leafs took Tyler Hopkins in the third round of the 2025 NHL draft, relying on his skating ability and strong two-way game to establish a solid floor, with the hope that his offensive output would continue to improve. Well, Hopkins has been heating up as of late, and he put together the best performance of his junior career when he helped lead the Guelph Storm to an 8-5 win over the Saginaw Spirit on Sunday.
It has taken Hopkins some time to adjust to his new surroundings following a trade to the Guelph Storm earlier this season, but he entered Sunday’s contest on a four-game point streak and built off of that in a big way against Saginaw. He scored his 18th goal of the season early in the first period to give the Storm a 2-1 lead and picked up an assist early in the second frame to help square the game after Saginaw had taken a lead. With the game going back and forth, Hopkins tied it up once again in the opening minute of the third period before completing the hat trick with the eventual game winner a couple of minutes later, and he would go on to add an empty netter for good measure.
Sunday’s outburst marked Hopkins’ second hat trick in the OHL, and the first five-point game of his career. His production hasn’t taken a huge leap from his draft year, but Sunday’s performance brought him up to 20 points in 22 games since being traded to Guelph, and it could prove to be a catalyst for a big finish to the regular season for Hopkins. He has taken on the role of centering the Storm’s top line, and he has been tasked with facing the best the opposition has to offer on a nightly basis, so he has contributed in other ways, but becoming a dominant offensive threat at the junior level is the next checkpoint for Hopkins to reach on his developmental path. His big night against Saginaw was a good start.
Notes from the rest of the prospect pool:
- Jacob Quillan bumped a four-game pointless drought with a goal in Saturday’s shootout loss to Cleveland. Dry spells have been few and far between for Quillan this season, and he hadn’t gone more than two straight games without a point all season prior to this recent slump. For the season, he’s got 10 goals and 20 assists in 35 games with the Marlies, and we could see him get a bit of a run with the Leafs down the stretch if they end up shipping out a couple of bodies at the trade deadline.
WE'RE ALL TIED UP! Jacob Quillan scores late in the third to tie the game at 2!
- Luke Haymes‘ production has ticked up in recent weeks, and he had another solid game against Hershey last Wednesday. He scored a goal and added an assist in a 3-2 loss, with the goal being his fourth in five games. Haymes has been held scoreless in the two games since then, and now has nine goals and 10 assists through 47 games in his rookie season with the Marlies.
Quick Strike from Haymer ⚡️ Cedric Pare tees up Luke Haymes for a blast from the face-off circle!
- Ryan Tverberg has also picked up the pace as of late, and he had another productive outing against Cleveland on Friday. He scored a goal and an assist, and added another helper in Saturday’s rematch, bringing him up to 18 points in 43 games so far this season. Tverberg is in the final year of his entry-level contract with the Leafs, and he’ll need a strong finish to the season if he is going to secure a qualifying offer from the organization this summer.
RYNO GETS US ROLLIN!!! Ryan Tverberg sneaks one past to give the Marlies the early 1-0 lead!
- Tinus Luc Koblar has had his ups and downs playing against grown men in the SHL this season, but he scored perhaps his biggest goal of the campaign this past week. It was his first point in nine games, but it couldn’t have come at a better time, as Koblar pounced on a loose puck and used his big frame to shield off a defender as he drove the net before sliding it home for the overtime winner. So far this season, Koblar has six goals and five assists through 40 SHL games.
#LeafsForever Tinus Luc Koblar uses his big body to shield off the defender, and his long reach to slide home the OT winner for Leksand. He has 11 points in 38 games this year.
- It was a rollercoaster week for Miroslav Holinka and the Edmonton Oil Kings. Edmonton lost against the Brandon Wheat Kings on Saturday, but Holinka did his part for the Oil Kings with a goal and two assists in the losing effort. Tuesday’s game didn’t go nearly as well, with Holinka being held off the scoresheet in a 10-6 loss where he finished with a -4 rating and just one shot on goal. It has been an overwhelmingly positive season for Holinka, and he’ll be looking to right the ship after a rough outing against Medicine Hat.
MIRO OFF THE REBOUND 👏 @EdmOilKings | @MapleLeafs | #LeafsForever
- Nick Moldenhauer kept up his strong play this past weekend, scoring the game-winner against Wisconsin on Saturday night. The goal was Moldenhauer’s 13th of the season and his eighth in the last 10 games. He has bounced back in a big way during his third season at Michigan, sitting fifth in team scoring with 26 points in 32 games. As one of the top teams in the nation, the Wolverines have their sights set on a run to the national title, and Moldenhauer will be a big part of it.
Moldy jumps over the boards and buries one!
- Harry Nansi started the season as one of the most productive players in the OHL, but his scoring dried up in the middle part of the season. He has started to find the scoresheet with regularity once again, and he extended his current point streak to six games with a goal in Saturday’s 5-0 win over Brampton. Over that stretch, Nansi has registered a goal and seven assists, lifting his season totals to 11 goals and 38 assists in 56 games.
- Hudson Malinoski had his best game of the season over the weekend, picking up the second hat trick of his collegiate career in a 5-3 win over the University of Vermont on Saturday. His assist numbers are down significantly this season, but the three goals on Saturday helped Malinoski match the 11 tallies he had a year ago. There have been periodic flashes from Malinoski in his time at Providence, but he looks like a long shot to earn an ELC with the Leafs at this point.
Second-career hat trick for Malinoski re-gains the two-goal lead! bit.ly/4qObJBa x @ESPNPlus
HUDDY HATTY 🎩🎩🎩 4-2 Friars!
- Alexander Plesovskikh torched the Russian junior league this past week. He had a goal and three assists in a 4-3 overtime victory on Thursday but was held scoreless in a losing effort on Saturday, and bounced back with a hat trick of his own in a 6-2 win on Monday. Plesovskikh is now over a point per game with 25 goals and 22 assists in 46 games this season, but he has yet to earn a real look in the VHL, which is roughly the Russian equivalent of the AHL.
#LeafsForever Alexander Plesovskikh with a hat trick 🎩🎩🎩 this morning in MHL action against Sakhalinskie Akuly. They were playing one of the bottom teams but Plesovskikh was incredible smooth with all three finishes. He now has 47 points in 46 games.
- 2025 seventh-round pick Matthew Hlacar has been a bit of a problem in the OHL this season, and he earned his third suspension of the campaign this past week for a check to the head. This latest suspension was for just one game, but he has now been suspended for a total of 11 games this season. Playing on the edge and being a physical presence is Hlacar’s calling card, but he is going to have to do a better job of toeing the line moving forward. He certainly isn’t tracking to be a big-time offensive producer at the next level, with just eight points in 40 games for the Kitchener Rangers this season.
Matthew Hlacar in his 1st period back since getting suspended 4 games for a hit to the head and throws yet another headshot. This one only a 2 minute minor because he just grazed him, but his intentions were clear. Did not learn his lesson from the suspension(s), evidently
Matthew Hlacar doing what Matthew Hlacar does. Throwing yet another dirty, high hit on a defenceless player. He was suspended 6 games in October for a bad blindside hit to the head. Got 5 games last year for a hit to the head. Also 1 game for hit to the head in the ploffs #Repeat
Statistics from EliteProspects.com and CHL.ca
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