The baby Maple Leafs may have lost their last game, but rookie camp finished with a happy ending.

Every member of the Leafs team that went 2-0-1 in the rookie tournament at Oshawa’s GM Place was invited to the main camp that opens Friday.

“It’s a pretty exciting day right now,” said forward Mitchell Heard, an undrafted prospect who really clicked on a line with Greg McKegg and Josh Nicholls. “There’s no words to describe the feeling right now.”

Outside of a spot on the third line, there really isn’t much open. Few, including Marlies coach Dallas Eakins, expected every one of these players to go to the main camp. But the team produced solid efforts in each game, including Tuesday’s 4-3 overtime loss to Ottawa.

“We were getting ready to send some guys on their way, but we kept playing well, we played well as a group, we liked the way they competed and in the end my bosses decided to bring every guy here,” said Eakins, the bench boss for rookie camp.

“Listen, when you’re a draft pick, you kind of know you’re going to go to the main camp, but good on these tryout guys, they came in and worked their butts off and now it’s something really special for them. Some of the kids are local guys and that’s a really big deal.”

Heard, from Bowmanville and a member of the Plymouth Whalers, was a standout in the summer at prospects camp. He had two assists Tuesday night, giving him a goal and three assists for the tournament. His second assist set up McKegg in the last minute of the third period to force overtime.

“He’s played well and it carried over from development camp,” McKegg said of Heard. “It’s been fun playing with him. We’ve had chemistry and hopefully we can keep that going.”

McKegg, captain of the Erie Otters, was one of the better Leafs on the ice all night.

“This kid has some great hands and he knows how to score,” said Eakins. “I know he continues to work on his skating. When he gets the puck, he is clearly very dangerous.”

One of few players who may actually get some ice time with the Leafs this year is Matt Frattin, easily the best player on the ice Tuesday night. The puck followed him around, it seemed. He scored the Leafs’ first goal, on a fine feed from defenceman Jake Gardiner.

It was a power-play goal with Frattin — a forward — playing the point.

“He clearly showed some of what he can do and I think he still has more to give,” Eakins said of Frattin. “We used him in all situations. We had him on the point on the power play, up front on the power play, 5-on-5, 4-on-4, penalty killing and he wasn’t falling away. It looks like he’s fairly fit as well.”

At 23, Frattin was one of the older players at the four-team tournament. It was expected he would dominate and he did. GM Brian Burke was impressed.

“I think he’s a good player,” Burke said of Frattin. “He’s going to get a good look in camp.”

Frattin, who played the last game of the year last season with the Maple Leafs, says he can’t wait to get into an exhibition game.

“I played with confidence today and I’ve got to carry my confidence into camp, into scrimmages and practices,” said Frattin, adding that making the team is “definitely one of my goals. There will be a lot of people in main camp with that goal, battling for that same spot.

“I’ve got a little experience now. It’s a fresh start.”

Another player under the microscope here was Gardiner. He may not crack the starting six defencemen out of camp, but he may well position himself to be the first call-up from the Marlies in case of injury or trade.

He appeared to struggle at times, making a few giveaways. Other times, his passes were crisp and on the money.

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“It’s part of the learning process,” said Eakins. “I’m encouraging him to do it. I’d rather he make his mistakes now. Let’s push the envelope too far and we’ll see the line where we’ve got to pull him back. He’s a smart kid.”

Players have only a couple of days before they must report for physicals on Friday at the MasterCard Centre.

“We’ve got to start the process of getting to know them, of seeing what makes them tick,” said Eakins. “It’s been nice to see them play against their peers. Now is when the real fun begins. They’re going to be playing against men in the next few days, some very young savvy men. We’ll see what they’re made of.”

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