|
Nylander Getting Hungry for a Taste + Trade Possibilities |
|
|
|
|
|
With the trade deadline approaching and the Maple Leafs looking to unload more talent Nylander has the itch to join the big club.
Over the weekend Toronto called-up Brendan Leipsic for a one game stint to give him a taste of NHL hockey with the Leafs. He scored his first goal as a Maple Leaf and the camera’s happened to zoom in on his parents who celebrated the goal more so than Brendan himself; a very proud moment for them. After a solid effort on Saturday night, Leipsic was sent back to the Marlies on Sunday. This is yet another clear indication the Leafs have zero plans to rush any of their prospects as they continue to ripen together on a very strong Toronto Marlies squad who are first in their division (38-9-4).
Among injuries, trades and suspensions there are going to be a lot of opportunities for Toronto’s farm team to get a chance to join the big club for a small or long stint.
It’s an interesting situation for Toronto as the Marlies are dominating and the Leafs are getting dominated. Management has to be careful as they want to give their young players a chance to play with the Leafs after working so hard all season and earning a chance. But at the same time, do they want to break apart the lines on the Marlies where players are gaining confidence together as they develop most excellently under Coach Sheldon Keefe.
Toronto will be sticking to its game plan of continuing to be patient with their prospects, something that may be hard for some of us to grasp, as we want to see the likes of Nylander just as much as he wants to come up and show us what he’s got.
William Nylander
You know Nylander wants to be playing with the Leafs, right now. After sustaining a concussion, William returned to the AHL Marlies in late January after missing a month of hockey. When Nylander was asked about playing in the NHL, he was quickly to admit he thinks about playing in the National Hockey League all the time. He watches all of the Maple Leafs games and wishes he was on the ice. “You just try to focus on what you can do and nothing else”. Nylander knows the Leafs are in a tricky situation with the big club being in the gutter and the Marlies on route to a possible Calder Cup. Since returning to the Marlies line-up after the concussion, Nylander has six points in five games and with a big hot streak there is still hope he wins the scoring race in the AHL.
What’s most important to Nylander is continue to be a dominant force on the ice, working on his game on and off the ice to become a professional. With this mentality, he will soon get his chance to join the Leafs, whether it is for a small stint or the remainder of the season, he’s going to get his shot.
Kapanen who scored the gold medal goal in this year’s wold junior hockey championship was saying that Nylander has been pretty good considering he just had a concussion and said that “it’s never easy coming back from stuff like that. I’ve been lucky enough to not ever get one, but I’ve heard it’s tough.”
Kapanen and Nylander are best friends and should both be a big part of the Leafs rebuilding plans moving forward. Kapanen has 20 points in 27 games, and sports a +5 rating.
Trades?
John Jaeckel (Blackhawks Blogger) was mentioning there is a possible trade looming with the Hawks and Leafs. Bryan Bickell and a pick/prospect coming back, apparently the Leafs are high on Ryan Hartman. The Hawks would take Colin Greening and prospect Stuart Percy from the Leafs in exchange. Personally, I'm not too keen on this trade.
Los Angeles has lost one of their top six players in Gaborik. They have a very solid two-hundred foot team and are likely looking to add some firepower up front to make up for the loss of Gaborik. They also just put Ehrhoff on waivers not too long ago. With that being said, the Kings are strapped for cash and can’t take on a lot of salary.
Parenteau, Grabner, or the legendary Leo Komarov could be of interest to the Kings. Each player has value in one way or another, and some more than others. Parenteau seems to be back into NHL game form and has found his confidence; he also makes 1.5 million which would be easy for the Kings to fit under their tight salary cap. Grabner makes 3 million, but the Leafs could eat part of his salary if they were to trade him, making him much more affordable for other teams. Finally, Leo, a player I don’t want the Leafs to trade, but could bring in one mighty return that could help Toronto for years to come. All options should be explored if it betters the team in the long run. If Toronto does happen to move Leo to another team the return better be worth it as he’s not only a fan favorite, but seems to be a coach favorite as well.
Los Angeles top prospect Adrian Kempe certainly would be a welcome addition to the Maple Leafs prospect pool.
It shouldn’t be long before the next Toronto Maple Leafs trade rolls through. With the removal of three monster contracts in Phaneuf, Kessel and Clarkson the Leafs have opened up a lot of long term salary and will have no issues bringing in a highly sought after free agent if the right one falls on their lap in the next couple of seasons.
Of course there has been a boat load of speculation regarding Stamkos, and some recent gossip of Tavares leaving the Islanders down the road. Who knows what the future UFA’s will do; all you can really do is hope they come home to Toronto. Whichever way you want to look at it, the Maple Leafs have weaved some magic lately moving players who were thought to be untradeable or un-coachable. They have set themselves up for the future and things are only looking up for the future.
Some of us fans have had a tough time during the rebuild, but now is the time to watch some of these ripening prospects come up to the big show and give you a little tease of what’s to come in the future. Hopefully some of these prospects are able to make an impact and have a feel good feeling when their stint is up with the Leafs. I for one am really looking forward to seeing Nylander in a Leaf uniform but am in no rush for him to be on the club full time.
Thanks for reading.
Blogger •Atlantic Division Writer • 
Join the Discussion:
»