The Toronto Maple Leafs believe the development of William Nylander will be better served by playing in North America for the second half of his first full professional season and have recalled the 2014 top pick from MODO in the Swedish Hockey League on Monday.
"It is unfortunately beyond our control when the rules of the transitions are written in this way," MODO Hockey GM Per Svartvadet said in a statement released on Monday.
The 18-year-old forward tallied eight goals and 12 assists in 21 games and stood out for Sweden at the recently concluded 2015 IIHF World Championship in Toronto and Montreal, with 10 points in seven games.
Nylander signed a three-year entry level deal with the Leafs last summer, but after some impressive moments at the rookie tournament and training camp, Toronto management decided that the best course of action was to return the offensively gifted forward to play against adult competition in his home country.
The Leafs exercised their option to recall Nylander prior to the January 16 IIHF deadline, based in part because MODO was in last place in the SHL standings and the young forward's performance against top end competition in the World Junior Championships.
Toronto Assistant GM Kyle Dubas was emphatic that their top prospect is not being recalled to play in the NHL but will be assigned to the Toronto Marlies of the American Hockey League and will remain there for the rest of the season, exercising the same restraint that the organization has maintained with former OHL scoring champion Connor Brown, who leads the Marlies with 29 points and was selected as an AHL All-Star last week.
"We need to be patient with William." Dubas said to Sportsnet's Hockey Central on Monday. "We really need to do what's best for these players and their development, not to make a splash by bringing them up when they've had short term success on the ice."
Dubas indicated that the eighth overall pick will make his North American debut on Friday, January 23, when the Marlies take on the Bulldogs at Copps Coliseum in Hamilton.
This is a prudent move by the organization, if they stay true to the plan of keeping Nylander with the Marlies and allow him to get his feet under him in the AHL. The 18-year-old played nearly 20 minutes a night at center and wing in the SHL, so it will be curious where Marlies coach Gord Dineen will place the slick skating forward.
Nylander will also benefit from having a support structure of fellow Swedes in Petter Granberg, Tom Nilsson and Viktor Loov that may help him acclimate more quickly to the North American game.
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The Leafs open their four-game road trip on Monday at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, as they face the Stanley Cup Champion Kings.
Los Angeles is 19-13-10 and barely holding on to the last wild-card spot in the Western Conference, while the Leafs recent struggles have seen them fall behind Washington and Boston for the last two spots in the Eastern Conference playoff race.
The Maple Leafs won a 4-3 shootout victory at Air Canada Center in the club's previous meeting on December 14, with James Reimer making 33 saves. Kings backup Martin Jones gets the start for Los Angeles, while former Kings backup Jonathan Bernier will get the start for Toronto.
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