Leafs, Nylander talking contract in Switzerland
Was Wednesday’s surprise summit in Zurich between Kyle Dubas and William Nylander a Swiss miss that could keep Nylander on the sidelines and maybe wind up in a trade?
Or did the meeting, first reported by Postmedia through a source, help break a near fourmonth contract stalemate with the restricted free agent and allow Toronto Maple Leafs general manager Dubas to get on with pending RFAs Auston Matthews and Mitch Marner?
With Dec. 1 looming — the date when Nylander would be ineligible for NHL play this season if he doesn’t sign a contract — a face-toface with the winger and his handlers was the right call, no matter who initiated it or how far apart the sides might be.
The result was subject to a news blackout, perhaps a positive signal.
There has been intensifying concern on the part of Nylander, his father Michael and player agent Lewis Gross that as the Leafs kept up a hot start (6-1-0) with lots of goals it will cost the winger some leverage as November approaches. Though it has only been five games, Kasperi Kapanen has produced eight points as Matthews’s new right-winger in Nylander’s spot.
Team Nylander must also keep its resolve as public opinion in Toronto backs the assertion that the high-scoring Leafs can get by without him and that he must be asking for the moon if a deal has yet to be reached. Yet the Leafs’ big picture with contracts is far more daunting for Nylander and Dubas.
Thus far, the GM has insisted he’s not shopping Nylander and though a trade would be one way to get out of this fix, it’s not believed to be Nylander’s first choice. Rather, he still wants to be a big part of the Leafs’ boy band.
In his brief exchanges with the media since the start of training camp, Dubas has made it clear it is his intention to bring the 22-yearold first-round pick back into the fold — as well as sign Matthews, Marner and Kapanen to new deals. His vision to keep the Leafs’ Stanley Cup-contending window open for this season and beyond has always included Nylander and it was part of the pitch Dubas used to sign John Tavares in July.
“It’s a big decision for (Nylander) and for us,” Dubas told Postmedia Sept. 29 of the slow progress of talks. “It has a huge impact on his situation and ours (cap-wise) here. As a result, those things tend not to happen overly fast.
“(A long-term deal) continues to be our focus and the stated focus of William and his camp. When things are being done that are going to lock everybody in for longer, they’re slower to come to fruition.”
Nylander has 143 points in 198 NHL games, including playoffs, was third on the team in points last season, has missed just one game since 2016-17 and led the Leafs in game-winning goals last season with eight.
But the longer he sits, the longer it will take to shake off the rust having not gone through an NHL training camp. Matthews, Marner and Kapanen are all having an outstanding October to underline their price tags on multi-year deals won’t be cheap.
That brings up another contentious point — whether Nylander should accept a hometown discount for a shot at the Cup, as suggested by president Brendan Shanahan on opening night. Taking one for the team didn’t likely go down well with the young Swede’s crew.
It’s possible the idea of a bridge contract is back on the table. Rather than something long term such as six years at US$40 million — comparable to Boston’s David Pastrnak and Nashville’s Filip Forsberg — Nylander could take the bridge route for something in the neighbourhood of $4 million to $5 million per season for a couple of years.