Up, Down, Between: Year in the Life of Maple Leafs Jacob Quillan

If you ever want to know what life is like for a Toronto Maple Leafs prospect, forget the hype videos and development camp quotes. Just trace one year of transactions. Jacob Quillan’s last twelve months tell you almost everything you need to know.

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In January 2025, Quillan Gets Called Up to the Maple Leafs

In January 2025, Quillan got the call every prospect waits for. Injuries to the Maple Leafs’ lineup opened a door, and Toronto brought him up from the Toronto Marlies of the AHL. He made his NHL debut, played limited minutes across a couple of games and didn’t look out of place. Then, nine days later, he was sent back down. Welcome to the NHL. Good fun, but one blink, and you missed it.

Back in the AHL, the work continued. Quillan finished the 2024–25 season as a useful, if unspectacular, piece—six goals, 15 points, learning how to be a pro. No drama. No headlines. Just bus rides and video sessions.

Out of the Maple Leafs Training Camp, Quillan Almost Makes It

Fast-forward to training camp in October 2025, and there he was, close, but not quite. Reassigned before opening night. Easton Cowan went one way, Quillan the other. That’s not failure. That’s roster math.

What followed was the kind of fall that turns heads quietly. By mid-November, Quillan was driving play in the AHL, piling up assists, winning shifts, checking all the right boxes. Fourteen points in thirteen games will do that. The Maple Leafs noticed. On November 17, he was back up. This time, the leash was short. A couple of games, some hits, no points. When the lineup got healthy again, he was back on the elevator—down on November 26.

Quillan Gets a December Call-Up to the Maple Leafs

December brought another recall. Injuries returned. Quillan centred a fourth line, played eight careful minutes a night, and kept his head above water. Three games, no points, few mistakes. Then—down again.

And then, finally, the payoff. Back with the Marlies in January 2026, Quillan exploded. Three goals and an assist in his first game back, after posting eight points in his previous six AHL games. Twenty-seven points in twenty-seven AHL games. Same player. Same habits. Better results.

This Is What Life Looks Like for a Maple Leafs Top Prospect

This is what prospect life looks like. You’re never settled, and always packing. You’re always auditioning, even when you’re not playing.

For Maple Leafs fans wondering where the next wave comes from, this is the answer. They’re not stuck, not failing, but always circling. And sometimes, like Quillan, they’re just a phone call away.

Related: Maple Leafs Nylander the Victim of Half-Baked Trade Logic