Nylander centre of attention with Bozak status uncertain
The uncertainty regarding the status of Tyler Bozak could force the hand of Maple Leafs coach Mike Babcock.
During practice on Monday, as the Leafs returned to the ice following their trip through Western Canada, Babcock had William Nylander centring James van Riemsdyk and Mitch Marner.
Bozak, of course, has been in that spot previously, but was absent from practice at the MasterCard Centre because of an illness. It’s the same issue that kept Bozak out of the lineup for the Leafs’ game in Vancouver against the Canucks on Saturday, a 2-1 Toronto loss.
Bozak’s availability for the Leafs’ next match, versus the Calgary Flames at the Air Canada Centre on Wednesday, could become more clear on Tuesday.
“It’s something that … who knows?” Babcock said. “If we got to use ( Nylander), we will maybe try him there.
“( We’re) trying to catch Willie, try to catch Mitch, try to catch all those young guys being good. When you play centre you’re often caught being bad. I don’t really need to catch him doing that. So that’s why ( Nylander) isn’t ( used as a centre regularly).”
Al s o on Monday, Nazem Kadri centred Marleau and Leo Komarov; Auston Matthews was between Connor Brown and Zach Hyman; and Dominic Moore centred Matt Martin and Josh Leivo.
Nylander has taken 214 faceoffs this season, usually when playing with Matthews, who then reverts to the centre position once the draw has been taken. Nylander’s winning percentage in the circle is 54.7 per cent, behind only Patrick Marleau ( 56.9) among Leafs who have taken at least 100 draws.
Monday marked the first time this season Nylander has practised in the spot, and though Nylander has played centre for the Leafs in the past, it has been sporadically.
There have been times when Babcock has put forth the notion that Nylander will be an everyday centre. During a trip last February, for example, Babcock said he saw Nylander as a centre “for sure” — but he has not voiced as much recently.
Babcock was asked again on Monday: Does he view Nylander as a centre in the long-term?
“I don’t know,” Babcock said. “I’m just trying to win the game against Calgary and go from there.”
There’s no denying Nylander’s talent. When he’s at the top of his game, he has the skill and the smarts to be one of the Leafs’ most electrifying players. The rub is that Babcock, at times, still has to light a bit of a fire under Nylander, and as such, might not be able to fully trust Nylander in a full-time role at centre.
At least, not yet. Nylander is 21 years old and not only has many productive years ahead of him in the NHL, but also will mature.
It’s an interesting time for Nylander, who is set to become a restricted free agent next summer and likely will be looking for a long-term contract in the range of US$6 million a season; the opportunity to become a centre well into the future could further present itself considering Bozak and Moore will be unrestricted free agents in 2018.
When the Leafs lost in Vancouver, Nylander’s run of four consecutive games with a point — his longest streak of the season — came to an end.
What Nylander does know is he’s going to have to shoulder more responsibility if he does find himself in the middle on Wednesday.
“There’s more down- low play in the D zone and boxing out and stuff, it’s a little different than playing the wing,” Nylander said. “You just have to take care of your defencemen. You get the puck through the middle of the ice more often.”