We have a fight on day one of Toronto Maple Leafs development camp.
Maple Leafs 2025 seventh-round pick Matthew Hlacar and Toronto Marlies signed Rhett Parsons dropped the gloves three-quarters of the way through the first day of Toronto's development camp. Each of the players got in a few punches before they had to be separated by other camp invitees.
"Just compete," Parsons said of why the two dropped the gloves. "Just going into a battle drill, that's what I pride my game after. I know we're all teammates off the ice and love the guy, love every teammate here, but when you're in a battle drill, just stuff like that happens. But total respect to him, no hard feelings off the ice."
Parsons, a defenseman with the ECHL's Cincinnati Cyclones last season, gave a few cross-checks to the back of Hlacar before both players dropped the gloves. "I kind of like to get under guys' skin, but no hard feelings, and like I said, these are all my teammates, I'm not trying to hurt anyone out there," added Parsons.
"It was just two guys going hard," said Hlacar after the first session of Toronto's development camp. "Tempers flare, and it happens. But it's all good. I talked to him after and we're fine. It is what it is."
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Hlacar was Toronto's seventh-round selection (217th overall) in the 2025 NHL Draft. He spent last season with the OHL's Kitchener Rangers, scoring seven goals and one assist in 43 games. The 19-year-old calls himself someone who plays hard and tries to do his own thing, adding, "I don't really try to be an enforcer, tough. I just kind of play hockey, play hard, and whatever happens, happens."
Born an hour outside of Toronto in Binbrook, Ontario, Hlacar grew up a Maple Leafs fan. His favorite player when he was younger? Phil Kessel. After being drafted by Toronto, Hlacar said he received a few text messages from current players, like John Tavares and Auston Matthews.
"I was just like, wow, this is for real now," he chuckled when asked what it was like when he saw those messages pop up.
Toronto's development runs from Thursday to Saturday, with a total of 48 players participating in the three-day-long event. The prospects have already spent several days in Toronto doing off-ice activities and are now beginning the on-ice portion of the camp.
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