Maple Leafs welcome return of Matthews, is Nylander next?
Auston Matthews is back. Will we be saying the same about William Nylander at some point in the coming days, if not on Saturday? Matthews is among the Leafs keeping his fingers crossed. “We hope to get him back, of course,” Matthews said before the Leafs beat the San Jose Sharks 5-3 on Wednesday night. “He is a big part of this team and the clock is kind of ticking. “Hopefully, that gets resolved because everybody wants him here. Us as players and knowing him, he wants to be here too.” The Leafs and the restricted free agent are said to be just a few hundred thousand dollars apart (per year) in contract negotiations, as Leafs Nation holds its breath with deadline to sign Nylander looming at 5 p.m. on Saturday. In there is no deal by then, Nylander can’t play in the NHL this season. And there has been no indication the Leafs would rather trade Nylander than keep him.
Maple Leafs coach Mike Babcock has been beating the Nylander for the drum for the past week, steadfast in his conviction that the Leafs will have the 22-year-old in uniform soon. Anyone who doubts the potential for the Leafs with both Matthews and Nylander in the lineup hasn’t been paying attention. The Leafs were in fourth overall prior to games on Wednesday. Adding those two to a healthy lineup will spell doom for the opposition on most nights. “Willie is a good player, he is in good shape, he has great edges and can skate,” Babcock said. “I just believe Willie likes it here. We love him here and he is a big part of it.
“And so we think he will be back. We think he will be up and running in a couple of weeks. We’re going to play him when he gets back.”
Nylander, meanwhile, skated with a junior team in Sweden on Wednesday. He happened to be wearing his Leafs helmet during the workout.
What did Matthews see in another cerebral teammate, Mitch Marner, as he watched for the past month?
“Seems like every night he gets you on the edge of your seat, even watching as a player,” Matthews said. “He has been dominant.”
POINT SHOTS
The Philadelphia Flyers placed goaltender Calvin Pickard on waivers on Wednesday. The expectation in this corner (and many others) is that the Leafs, who lost Pickard off waivers on Oct. 2, will strongly consider claiming the 26-year-old. Toronto requires the depth in the organization and neither Jeff Glass nor Eamon McAdam has been leaving American Hockey League opponents in fits of frustration … The Leafs late on Tuesday night traded defenceman Andrew Nielsen to the Calgary Flames for forward Morgan Klimchuk, who has played in one NHL game, that coming in February. Certainly on the surface, the Leafs acquired Klimchuk for depth on the Toronto Marlies roster. Klimchuk was a first-round pick by Calgary in 2013 (28th overall), and every one of the other 29 players selected in the first round has played in more NHL games (as have 63 taken after him). In 204 games in the AHL, the six-foot, 190-pound Klimchuk has 100 points … Nielsen, drafted 65th overall by the Leafs in 2015, had a couple of promising years with the Marlies, but played in just eight games this season. Close pal Travis Dermott said it was “upsetting ” that Nielsen was traded, yet understood the situation. “A guy I got really close with from Day 1 here,” Dermott said. “The hockey world can be pretty cruel sometimes, but I think he will get some good opportunities there. Personally, selfishly, I am pretty upset about it. We have a lot of good D here. Tough to fit in when you have this many good prospects at a young age where you can be overlooked kind of easily. If he’s not getting his opportunities, there must be some pretty good players ahead of him (with the Marlies). It shows good for us and hopefully it’s good for him.” … San Jose coach Peter DeBoer on Patrick Marleau after the former Shark became just the 11th NHLer to play in 1,600 games: “He’s a linebacker on skates. He is physically so gifted, both with his skating ability and also his body. People don’t realize how big a man he is and how powerful he is. He doesn’t shy away from getting in the corners and doing dirty work too, which makes it all more impressive. I’m a big fan, as is everyone.”