Toronto Maple Leafs prospect Jeremy Bracco dominant in Memorial Cup victory

After struggling to fit in the lineup with the Windsor Spitfires, Toronto Maple Leafs prospect Jeremy Bracco finishes his junior career with a strong performance in the Memorial Cup.

If there was any doubt about what Jeremy Bracco can do on the big stage, Sunday’s Memorial Cup final showed he can be a big time player. The Toronto Maple Leafs prospect had five points in three games heading into the final game against the Erie Otters, where he had his best performance for the Windsor Spitfires.

The Spitfires had already earned a victory over the OHL Champion Otters team, who owned the most lethal offence in the tournament. However, it was the host team that came up with another defensive gem.

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This was thanks in large part to Michael DiPietro, who made 32 saves in the Spitfires’ 4-3 victory, as they won their third Memorial Cup title. Windsor became the first host team to lose in the first round of its league playoffs and rebound to win the Memorial Cup.

It was Bracco who got it all started with a power play goal in the first period. This coming off a loose puck the winger was able to find and sneak past Troy Timpano:

His second point of the game came off an assist on the Logan Stanley goal that tied the game at two. This was an easy assist for Bracco after finding Stanley above the faceoff circle, who saw his wrist shot through traffic go in.

Bracco’s third point of the game came on a crucial play that set up the winning goal. He skated along the boards to draw the defenders, before setting up Aaron Luchuk in front of the net. It was a nice play by the 20-year old to skate wide and protect the puck long enough, so his teammate could get open:

Bracco has now won at three different tournaments including the under-18 and under-20 World Junior Championships for the USA, and now a Memorial Cup. He is mainly known as a play-maker and that was on full display in this tournament.

Now the focus for Bracco will be the move to professional hockey, after signing his entry-level contract back in March. He will likely play with the Toronto Marlies next season and be one of their featured wingers, considering the way he has been able to produce at different levels.

He had 51 points in 27 games with the Kitchener Rangers before a trade to the Spitfires, where he only registered 32 points in 30 games with Windsor. That likely had more to do with him not playing in a more prominent role like he did with Kitchener.

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With Carl Grundstrom having a strong debut in the AHL playoffs with the Marlies and Adam Brooks finishing his junior career, they would be the early favourites to be the feature line with Bracco. The Freeport, NY native said after the game he has his sights on the Leafs, but that will likely come with time and patience in his development, just like other Leafs prospects.