After getting a small taste of the NHL last season, Alex Steeves spent this summer working on improving his skating. But his self-awareness might be what helps the forward reach his ultimate goal.
Alex Steeves had what many would consider an excellent first full season of professional hockey.
Spending most of the first season with the Toronto Marlies, the Notre Dame alumnus accumulated 23 goals and 36 points in 53 games. But it was his three-game stint with the Toronto Maple Leafs in December that taught him most about what it takes to stick around.
One of those games was against the Tampa Bay Lightning where he found himself on the ice with the likes of Victor Hedman.
"Guys like that can close and finish plays so much quicker in the corner," Steeves said. "You've got to be really good on your edges and be able to turn and be available for guys to get you the puck and also hold on to it and distribute it."
And that's when it clicked.
When his season concluded, Steeves and the Maple Leafs carved out a plan to improve his skating. After going home to Minnesota for a brief family visit, he returned to Toronto to meet with the development staff to have what he described as an honest assessment of his profile as a player. He took those instructions to Minnesota where he skated with skills coach PJ Atherton, before returning to Toronto in early August when he stayed, for the most part, to skate with his teammates.
"I really just tried to improve my skating in the corners, how I can protect pucks, get off the wall, gets towards the middle of the ice thing and things of that nature," Steeves explained. "Turning tight and being able and make a guy think I'm going one way and turn the other way."
Steeves is one of many prospects that Maple Leafs GM Kyle Dubas name-checked last summer as players he expects to compete for a roster spot out of training camp. And if the skating has improved enough, he might be able to do just that.
But it's his self-awareness and being able to break down his strengths and weaknesses that demonstrate the maturity required to make it.
Steeves has an accurate shot and his hockey IQ is evident. He was typically in the right position during his tenure with the Marlies.
With the summer over, Steeves has demonstrated the difference through the first two games of the prospects tournament in Traverse City.
"He's always been super serious about his business and in the way he handles himself, it's something to look up to," Leafs prospect Max Ellis said of Steeves.
Ellis and Steeves were teammates at Notre Dame together before joining the Leafs organization roughly one year apart. The chemistry was evident when Steeves set Ellis up for a goal against the St. Lous Blues prospects on Friday.
Throughout the week, Steeves' improved skating was noticeable. Particularly in his forecheck.
Steeves has all of the tools. His teammates like playing with him. He has the hands and positioning down.
It's his desire to stick around and continuously improve that won the Maple Leafs over when they signed him as a free agent out of school in 2021.
And it's why he might just make it.
"The ultimate motivation is just to improve my skating and be able to hang and make plays and hold on to the puck at the next level."
