William Nylander, Connor Brown, Frederik Gauthier, Dominic Toninato, Rinat Valiev and Jack Flinn.

These six were among those who stood out at the recent Maple Leafs’ prospects camp. They are all on different timetables, with different expectations weighing on them. Their paths to the NHL — if they ever make it — will be as different as their paths this summer.

Nylander is coming out of the Swedish leagues, touted as a can’t-miss prospect.

Brown is a late pick out of the OHL who blossomed as a shooter due to his competitive nature.

Gauthier is a first-round pick out of Quebec, known for his size and smarts.

Toninato, another late-rounder, is coming up through the NCAA ranks.

Valiev left Russia to play in Canada because he wants to play in the NHL.

Flinn is undrafted, unsigned and maybe worth a long look.

Some, but not all, will meet again at September’s rookie camp. Here’s a look at what got them this far and what they’ll be up to in the short-term.

William Nylander

Forward, first-round pick, eighth overall, in 2014

Coming out of the Swedish leagues, Nylander impressed scouts when he played on men’s teams and held his own.

He will spend the rest of his summer in Sweden, on the radar for the world junior team.

Nylander saw his skills shine at camp. He was as smooth a skater as scouts said, adept at handling the puck. He could dish, he could score. He was a heads-up player who looks like he wants to play that possession game.

“He is as advertised,” said Steve Spott, the new Leafs assistant coach who helped run prospects camp. The only thing he has to work on is getting bigger and stronger and that’s going to come in time.”

Nylander and defenceman Viktor Loov, teammates in Sweden, had some naturalchemistry. Drafted as a winger, Nylander played mostly at centre until last season, when he played against men.

“I look to see if I have a play to make, otherwise I try to keep the puck to myself, hold on to it,” said Nylander. “I can go back and forth between centre and wing. For me, it doesn’t matter.”

He should be in Toronto in the fall and could be with the Leafs for at least a few games. He could play big minutes with the Marlies.

Connor Brown

Winger, sixth-round pick, 156th overall, in 2012

A late-round pick, Brown blossomed as a goal scorer on one of the best teams in the OHL.

The OHL scoring champion and player of the year will be working out most of the summer at the MasterCard Centre, as the Etobicoke native lives nearby. At five-foot-11, 170 pounds, he knows he needs to add some weight to his frame.

“I’m a self-motivated guy,” said Brown. “Me being a late rounder, it’s going to take a lot of hard work. You want to play in the best league possible. If there are spots or no spots, you’re going to have to punch a hole in the lineup if you want to play.”

This was his third — and most likely, final — Leafs’ summer prospects camp. He was fast, the puck followed him around and he got a few scoring chances.

“He continues to excel and he continues to work on his game,” said Jim Hughes, the Leafs’ director of player development. “A skilled player with a high compete level. He’s just got to keep moving forward.”

Brown could conceivably go back to the Erie Otters as an over-aged player. The Otters, with the highly touted Connor McDavid, might like to have Brown back if they want to have a run at a Memorial Cup. But Brown could well be destined for the Marlies.

“He’s a leader. You can see what he can do with the puck,” said Spott. “He could have a big year pro, he could take the next step. The Marlies have lost some offensive guys, hopefully he can step in and provide some offence.”

Frederik Gauthier

Centre, first-round pick, 21st overall, in 2013

A late bloomer even for junior, Gauthier tantalized scouts with his size and smarts.

Gauthier will train at home in Laval followed by summer camp in Montreal with Canada’s world junior team.

Boy is he big and against his peers, he played big. At six-foot-four, 215 pounds, he went to all the so-called hard areas — in front of the net and along the boards — and threw his weight around. He was tough to move off the puck.

“It’s part of what I want to be good at,” said Gauthier. “I want to be the best I can be. If I can be a No. 2 centreman, I’ll try to be one. I just want to keep improving myself.”

There are two knocks on him: his skating and his offence. He’s working on his skating, and seemed better this year than last. He’s working on his scoring, but that does not seem to come very naturally to him.

The good news, he’s a smart hockey player and defensively sound. He should have a long NHL career, no worse than a solid third-line checking centre.

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“He plays the whole rink,” Hughes said of Gauthier. “He’s a glue guy. He supports the puck. There’s no doubt as he continues to grow, his skating will get stronger. For sure, his skating last year to this year has improved. There’s no reason it won’t improve by this time next year.”

Gauthier should expect another season with Rimouski in the Quebec league.

Dominic Toninato

Winger, fifth-round pick, 126th overall, in 2012

Under the radar in his draft year, the teams that knew about him congratulated the Leafs on the pick.

The native of Duluth, Minn., is heading home and will return to college at the University of Minnesota-Duluth for his second season. His first wasn’t outstanding, with seven goals and eight assists in 35 games.

“I’ve got to keep trying to progress until they give me a call,” said Toninato. “I got better. It wasn’t the points I wanted, but that will come.”

But he’s a scorer, and showed an ability to pick apart defences while heading full-steam to the net. He paired with Nylander on occasion and scored twice in Friday’s scrimmage.

“He had a great week,” Hughes said. “It’s great exposure for him. For him to play against the Swedes and major junior kids is really good exposure. He can use it as a barometer to see where his game is and figure out his strengths and weakenesses.”

Toninato won’t be at September’s rookie camp, due to NCAA eligibility rules and the demands of school.

Rinat Valiev

Defenceman, third round, 68th overall, in 2014

Valiev left Russia — not knowing any English — to play hockey at Indiana in the USHL two years ago. He moved on to the Kootenay Ice of the Western Hockey League and was impressive enough to get drafted in his second year of eligibility.

So impressed are the Leafs, they’ve already signed him — the first of this year’s crop to land a contract.

“I was so excited,” said Valiev. “It’s a dream to come from Russia and play here.”

The Leafs are deep in quality defencemen and Valiev is probably three years away from getting serious consideration. He is looking to see how the likes of Petter Granberg, Stuart Percy do at the top of the prospects heap. Viktor Loov and Tom Nilsson, a pair of older Swedes, are also highly regarded.

“We’ve got a stockpile there,” said Hughes.

Jack Flinn

Goalie, undrafted

Flinn was invited to the prospects camp in large part because the Leafs have drafted only one goalie in the last three years, Antoine Bibeau. Bibeau had a great Memorial Cup with Val D’Or and should have another solid season in the QMJHL. He didn’t have a particularly good camp, but goalies take a lot more time to develop so no one is particularly worried.

But the 18-year-old Flinn did, getting a shutout in Friday’s scrimmage. And he’s intriguing. He is six-foot-seven and models himself after Carey Price. He got into a mere 21 games with Owen Sound last year, but has a chance to be the starter this year.

“I try to stay calm and play well positionally,” said Flinn. “I’m definitely a butterfly goalie. With my size it helps, because it tends to take away the lower part of the net when I go down. I stick with that.”

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