Perhaps it’s not the best year for rookie-camp invitees with big-league dreams for the coming season. Toronto’s NHL roster appears to be largely set, after all, save for a single job as a third-line forward. The likes of Nazem Kadri, Joe Colborne, Phillipe Dupuis and Matt Frattin are expected to be in the running for that coveted spot. Only Frattin is attending the five-day rookie camp that officially begins Saturday in Oshawa. Still, the camp has a history of featuring players who, in the same season, found work in the NHL. With that in mind, here are six players to watch:

MATT FRATTIN: The former University of North Dakota winger’s fall from grace has been well documented. A couple of alcohol-fuelled run-ins with the law lost him his scholarship a couple of years back. But Frattin redeemed himself, returning to finish his tenure with the Fighting Sioux after serving a suspension and securing a student loan. The 23-year-old made his NHL debut in last season’s final game and has a legitimate chance to make the Leafs out of training camp.

MITCHELL HEARD: One of the unexpected stars of the club’s July prospects camp, the 19-year-old Heard, an undrafted left winger from the OHL’s Plymouth Whalers, is essentially in camp on a one-off tryout. “You could argue (Heard) might have been the best player in the prospect camp,” said Marlies coach Dallas Eakins, who’ll run the rookie camp.

DAVID BROLL: The Brolldozer, as he’s known, was the 152nd overall pick in the June draft, and it’s likely he’ll begin this season as a member of the Soo Greyhounds. Still, he’s only 18, and a physical presence who’ll look to do damage before camp is done.

JESSE BLACKER and JAKE GARDINER: Blacker is the 20-year-old Toronto-bred defenceman who anchored the blue line for the Owen Sound Attack a season ago. Gardiner, 21, is the 2008 first-round pick acquired from Anaheim in the Francois Beauchemin trade. “They are both exciting guys to watch. We’ve just got to point them in the right direction, get them to understand when it’s time to take a risk,” Eakins said.

MARK OWUYA: Also known by his hip-hip alter ego, Mark in da Park, Owuya, 22, is a former contestant on Swedish Idol. But the Stockholm native says music is now only an occasional hobby. “I’m a professional hockey goalie,” said Owuya, who spent part of the summer facing shots from a group of Swedish NHLers.

Read more about: