It was only a matter of time before Joey Anderson made his way up to the Maple Leafs’ roster.
When Nick Robertson went off holding his shoulder on Thursday night, it meant another player was to be called up to the NHL. There were a number of options that the Maple Leafs could’ve plucked from the Marlies, including Alex Steeves, Adam Gaudette, and Anderson.
All three players were more than deserving of being called up, in my opinion. Though the decision was always going to be a difficult one for Toronto.
With a left-shot player going down, I thought Steeves would’ve been given the opportunity. It makes sense — a left-shot goes down, why not bring a left-shot in? Before Friday night’s game in Syracuse, the 23-year-old tallied 20 points in his first 22 games this season. A great beginning of the year for Steeves.
However, Anderson has played just as good. Maybe even a tad better, scoring 19 points in his first 21 games this season.
“He’s a guy that has come up here a couple of times over my time here and I think has done well in a very short window of time,” said Maple Leafs head coach Sheldon Keefe on Friday. “And then each time he goes down to the Marlies, he really is a true leader for them down there, …

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Author: Nick Barden / The Leafs Nation