With the Toronto Marlies now sidelined the question as players head into the off-season is how many will get a shot at making the Maple Leafs next season?

And will Dallas Eakins still be behind the Marlies’ bench to groom future NHL players for the parent club?

Eakins is under contract for next season but the three-year deal signed at the end of last season gives him an opportunity to entertain NHL job offers before next season rolls around.

“To be honest, I haven’t thought about it yet,” Eakins said moments after the Marlies were eliminated on Tuesday night by the Grand Rapids Griffins when they blew a two-goal lead by giving up three goals in the final 10 minutes at the Ricoh Coliseum. “I’ve got contract time left here. … We’ll see what happens with that stuff.”

Despite the disappointing loss, Eakins believes several of his players made great strides this season and they could get a long look with the Leafs. Besides centres Joe Colborne and Ryan Hamilton, both of whom played a bit for the Leafs, Eakins said players such as Carter Ashton, Greg Scott and Jerry D’Amigo have the ability to take the next step.

“I don’t think we had anybody who stalled in their progress,” Eakins said. “I thought everybody took strides forwards. My message to them is how are they going to handle their summer to get better? Are they going to remember how hard it is to play in this league and how hard it is to get a shot at the NHL or is that memory going to be lost in a couple of weeks when they’re standing on a golf course away from the rink?”

Blue chip defenceman Morgan Rielly will likely go to the Leafs training camp but his game will develop better with a full season of playing the power play and a regular shift in the AHL.

Veteran defenceman Paul Ranger also presents an intriguing possibility. The former Tampa Bay blueliner returned to hockey this season after a three-year absence but didn’t want to sign an NHL contract. He had a solid season and was one of the team’s best mobile defenceman with a hard shot.

“His body of work was excellent. He’s a battling guy. He’s a horse. He’s very strong and knows his position,” Eakins said.

The Marlies went through more than 40 players this season. Before the NHL lockout ended, Eakins had Nazem Kadri, Ben Scrivens, Mike Kostka and Mark Fraser on his bench. He would later lose Jake Gardiner, Hamilton and Colborne for stretches but the team never wilted and still won the North Division of the Western Conference.

“I knew they were ready to get a shot at it (with the Leafs),” said Eakins, who has guided the Marlies to 87 wins over the past two seasons.

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