10/04/2023
It's no secret that William Nylander and the Toronto Maple Leafs haven't been able to come to an agreement on a new contract extension. With Nylander entering the final year of his contract, and the leafs having salary cap issues, how should new GM Brad Treliving address the situation and make it all work?
He has made some needed additions to the team and the Matthew's extension is a huge sigh of relief. Nylander is a very talented player and most of us would agree that he has had consistency issues in the past. Last season, he did make quite an improvement in that area. He is turning into a well rounded player. Would I pay Nylander the 10 million he is asking for? I believe his worth to be in the 8.5-9M range. But for the teams best interest, I think the only alternative is to trade him. Their most urgent need is to aquire a tough two way defenceman.
The next question would be, when do you trade him? Do you take the chance and risk loosing him at the end of the season for nothing as a UFA? On paper they have a very strong team and could make a run for the cup. Do you trade him now and give the young guys like Mathew Knies and Nick Robertson more ice time? This years first round pick Easton Cowan has been impressive in camp but he is not ready for the NHL level and would benefit from some time in the AHL with the Marlies. Would the team be good enough then to make the playoffs and win the Stanley Cup without him?
In my opinion, It is best to trade for the strong two way defenceman that they need. They don't have the worst defence in the league and have already added John Klingberg, but he is an offensive defenceman who will surely help out an already potent power play. They need an elite defensive defenceman who is very difficult to play against and can help with the penalty kill.
With GM Treliving adding Max Domi, Tyler Bertuzzi and Ryan Reeves, the forward unit will be a lot tougher to play against . Their energy level and physicality would bring more of a balance with skill and grit. Bertuzzi can score, but not at the rate of Nylander. Mathew knies will also help fill that void but at what rate is still unclear. He showed us what he is capable of late in the season and starting in the playoffs before he got hurt. His future looks bright. Nick Robertson has yet to be a regular on the leafs forward group mostly due to injuries. He has the skillset to be a quality NHL player.
In my opinion, Nylander’s offensive skills are among the top players in the league, but he is often criticized for his poor defensive play. I question how badly he wants to be a leaf? He has stated publicly that he wants to remain a Leaf, but if he really wanted to be a leaf, and knowing the cap issues, it would be to his advantage to adjust his contract demands to be a little more team friendly? The leafs are a good team and despite the fact of their cup less drought, are geared up to upset the heavily favoured Carolina Hurricanes, New Jersey Devils, Colorado Avalanche and Edmonton Oilers. Nylander has also stated publicly that his contract is his agents job to handle. Yes his agent, Lewis Gross is responsible for negotiating his contract for him, but Nylander has the final decision and it's up to him to tell his agent what he will and what he won't accept. If Nylander genuinely wanted to be a part of this team and sign, he would have done so by now. He is giving Leaf Nation the impression that it's all about the money and not the love of the sport or his dedication to the team. It's time to move on.
