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Where Will William Nylander End Up? |
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Hello everyone and welcome back to the Hotstove! This blog will cover the big trades, additions, and just other notable news of the NHL by bringing in your favorite writers on this site (and myself) and laying down our thoughts on the matter. If you don't agree with one of us, chances are you might with another. Regardless it's a fun way to collaborate and get the whole HockeyBuzz community involved.
Have your own questions you want us to tackle? Be sure to let us know in the comments section!
With that, let's run head first into our first blog which is discussing where William Nylander will end up playing this season.
Sean Maloughney
I've written in the past about how the Seattle Kraken and the Toronto Maple Leafs make sense as trade partners for a Nylander trade (cap space, Seattle's abundance of draft picks, not dealing him to an Eastern Conference team, etc). That being said I think there is a better fit for both sides and that involves the Winnipeg Jets.
Winnipeg is right on the precipice of blowing it all up. They've bought out their long time captain Blake Wheeler, and the team is actively shopping both their top line centre in Mark Scheifele, and their number one goalie and arguably one of the best netminders on the planet in Connor Hellebuyck. The Jets also do have cap space, though much of that will get eaten up by their RFA's in Stanley, Kupari, and Vilardi.
Nylander makes 6.9 million, Hellebuyck makes 6.1 million. Both players are UFA after this season. Toronto needs a legitimate starting goalie and the Jets need forwards but specifically they need new elite players to start rebuilding their team around. In that way a lateral move between both teams and then pitching each player to stick around and sign an extension seems like a scenario that benefits all parties involved. While it might be tougher for the Jets to convince Nylander to stick around, worst case scenario he would fetch a very nice price for any team at the trade deadline.
Karine Hains
Much has been said and written about splitting up Toronto’s big four. Wrongly or rightly, William Nylander appears to be the odd man out and the one most fan want to see moved. What would be a good landing spot for Nylander?
On July 1st, his modified no trade clause kicked in, meaning that he can give the Leafs a list of 10 teams he cannot be traded too. It’s therefore safe to assume that the likes of Arizona and rebuilding teams are out of the question. He’s currently in the last year of his contract, which has an AAV of $6.9 M and he’ll therefore be looking for a high price tag extension. He’s hit 80 points in the last two seasons and has established himself as a point per game player.
Personally, I think Nashville could be a good landing spot for Nylander. Looking at Daily Faceoff, the Preds’ first line is currently formed of Forsberg, O’Reilly and Nyquist. Needless to say, Nylander would be an update at right wing. Furthermore, the Preds have got the cap room ($7.9 M in cap space and a roster of 22/23) to take on Nylander’s current contract and they’ve got a lot of players on expiring deals this year, meaning that they don’t have too much money committed in the coming years.
Since taking over from David Poile as general manager, Barry Trotz has not been afraid of making changes, buying out Matt Duchene and trading Ryan Johansen to the Avs while retaining 50% of his salary (the trade was made before Poile left, but it’s obvious that Trotz had his say in it). A trade for Nylander to the Preds could start with goaltending prospect Yaroslav Askarov since the Leafs have had issues for years finding good goaltending and obviously multiple other assets.
Trevor Neufeld
The question of which team is the best fit for William Nylander is a fun one.
When examining Brad Treliving’s approach to trading high value assets, two phrases rule supreme: Quality and Term.
With that said, my pick for best fit would be the Minnesota Wild. A team starving for offence at times, but with the depth and positive atmosphere to see Nylander excel in all situations. Whether it’s on the powerplay with Kirill Kaprizov or shutting down the attack on the penalty kill with Fredrik Gaudreau or Connor Dewar.
I’m terms of team needs, despite an 11th place finish, Minnesota ranked 23rd in Goals For over 82 games at 239. Three goals behind the New York Islanders. A major issue being that the team seems to go dry as a unit for stretches on end.
Nylander would help immediately with that. He’s proven to be a one-man offensive machine at times. The 27 year old would head to a team where he doesn’t have to be “the guy”, but will be out there every time the Wild need a goal — and when the team fell silent, he might be the one to break through and get on the board.
For fun, here’s a potential trade provided Brad Treliving’s playbook follows the idea of giving value and getting salary control in return:
To Minnesota:
William Nylander
To Toronto:
Joel Eriksson Ek
2024 third round pick
The outrage will be there. Nylander is coming off of a 40 goal, 87 point season. Eriksson Ek had a mere 23 goals and 61 points in 78 games by comparison. Toronto media will have a field day.
In terms of the fit though? Toronto gets an offensively productive center that can play shutdown minutes and is signed for the next six seasons at $5,250,000 per. No more cap drama and a player that knows his role.
General manager Bill Guerin and the Wild have a projected $8,281,412 in cap space this year as well as Mats Zuccarello’s $6,000,000 coming off the books next offseason. Easily enough room to pay William what he’s asking for at an extended term.
Josh Biringer
At 27, William Nylander is great pick up for any team. He can slot in on either wing, produce at a point per game pace, and is as productive in the postseason as the regular season. With 1 year remaining on his roughly $7M cap hit contract, he's also a relatively affordable rental for any team looking to revamp their top 6 options.
One option for a new locale could be in the Pacific Northwest. Seattle, in its young tenure, has become a strong force in their division and will have to figure out what kind of team they will be over the next few years as they transition from their expansion roster phase into a fully developed prospect farm system. William Nylander can help with that. Imagine him on a wing with Matty Beniers or on a powerplay unit opposite Oliver Bjorkstrand. His versatility on either wing can make their top 6 more flexible and lessens the load of other veteran wings, like Jordan Eberle. Seattle also has the cap to make this work long term if they decide to move on from certain free agents next season. Seattle also all their picks for the next 3 years plus a pair of deeper round choices this coming draft. What Seattle is willing to give in a trade and what Toronto desires may not totally matchup. Time will tell where Nylander will punch his next ticket to.
Jacob Billington
I think the best place for William Nylander is the Toronto Maple Leafs and they would be foolish to move on from him as they likely wouldn't get his replacement back in a deal. However, for the sake of looking at trade destinations, the Carolina Hurricanes are number one on my list. Nylander would fit in well with the top forwards on that team, they have plenty of upcoming cap space and not many players signed past next season.
With rumors surrounding Brett Pesce being dealt as he is still without an extension, he would be a great fit for the Leafs. The Hurricanes are lacking high-end scoring and Nylander brings just that. While general manager Don Waddell isn't one to give out massive contracts like Nylander is calling for, there is certainly some reason to believe he would be able to make this work.
Jeremy Laura
Where for Nylander?
As I look at the player, the money, and the team he’s one there are a couple things that stand out. First, you probably don’t want him in your division. And so, I turned westward. Nylander has a scoring element that will change a team dynamic and he’s still fairly young. That’s when I ended up on Chicago.
The Blackhawks have plenty of cap space, and they have Seth Jones. Toronto would have to add pieces, get salary retention, possibly involve a third team. If the Leafs are looking at the blue line Seth Jones could do a lot. I don’t know Seth’s appetite as far as the rebuild goes, but he may be amicable. Chicago could afford to extend Nylander and they have a chance to have Nylander work with the first overall draft pick. I think there are a lot of positives. 1, Chicago isn’t going to be making a run for the cup. 2, Toronto gets a very exciting piece for their defense. 3, they only have to see a lost and talented asset a couple times per year.
Again, the Leaf’s money situation is tricky. It isn’t going to get less tricky. So, you may have to give up picks and prospects/players for Chicago to retain and help the team get cap compliant. As much as I’d love to see him in Detroit, there just doesn’t seem to be a path there. So, for what it’s worth, I think the Blackhawks and the Leafs could benefit from this deal.
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I would like to thank Karine, Trevor, Jeremy, Jacob, and Josh for getting involved in this first one. Let us all know what you think in the comments section.
Thanks for reading!
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