The Toronto Maple Leafs are without their first-round pick for both this year and next – a major concern when trying to rebuild one of the NHL’s worst teams.

However, it is not as if the Leafs cupboard is completely empty, and proof of that lies in Hockey’s Future Prospect of the Month for January – Nazem Kadri of the London Knights.

Kadri had a poor start to the season considering the expectations laid upon him by the Leafs organization. He played out the month of October, registering just 12 points in 12 games, but as the season has picked up steam, so has Kadri. He was named to the Canadian World Junior team, and while he probably didn’t perform as well as he would have liked to, he has set the OHL on fire upon his return.

The London native tallied 25 points in just 11 games, scoring over two points per game. More importantly, 19 of those 25 points were assists, a facet of his game that Kadri seemed to be neglecting more so this year than in years past. He is now back on pace to match the 53 assists he posted last season, and has already notched a career high of 26 goals in just 39 games this season.

:mikrofon: