UPDATE - Sportsnet's Chris Johnston reports that the Leafs and William Nylander have agreed to a six-year deal for just under $7 Million per season.
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The Toronto Maple Leafs enter the month of December near the top of the NHL standings and hope to stretch their winning streak to four games against the Minnesota Wild at Xcel Energy Center on Saturday.
The Leafs begin a nearly three-week stretch where they will play seven of the next eight games on the road, where they have enjoyed great success until recently, when they lost consecutive games to Carolina and Columbus.
Frederik Andersen is expected to get the start for Toronto and Mike Babcock will stay with the same lineup that won over San Jose on Wednesday, but according to Paul Hendrick, the Leafs head coach will tinker with the lines slightly, as Patrick Marleau shifts to the line with Auston Matthews and Kasperi Kapanen and Andreas Johnsson moves to the unit with Nazem Kadri and Connor Brown.
With mere hours to go, what do #Leafs fans think will be the final outcome of the Nylander saga?? #TMLtalk#NylanderWatch
The game in St. Paul is taking a backseat to the unfolding drama of the William Nylander impasse and the 5pm EST deadline fast approaching.
The general consensus is that a trade involving the 22-year-old is unlikely at this late stage unless it is a sign-and-trade similar to what Arizona did with Kyle Turris in 2011 (who locked up the RFA center and then flipped him to Ottawa days later) and that the likeliest results are Nylander signing a short-term bridge/long-term contract or remaining unsigned past the deadline and becoming ineligible to play in the National Hockey League this season.
The situation is fairly straight forward if the two sides agree on a deal. If Nylander signs to a three-year bridge contract at $5 Million AAV, per Cap Friendly the cap hit for 2018-19 will be slightly over $6.5 Million and will be close to $4.5 Million for the two remaining years. The same would be the case if he signs a longer-term deal. On a six-year contract under $7 Million, the cap hit for 2018-19 would be slightly more than $9.5 Million and in the $6.5 Million range for the remaining five years, but both amounts are contingent on how much the Leafs agree to pay in signing bonus in Year 1.
If the winger refuses to sign, it is a scenario where nothing gets resolved, but the Leafs will not be without options. Kyle Dubas currently has more than $12 Million in available cap space this season and if Nylander does decide to sign in Europe or stay dormant for an entire season, it frees up the Leafs GM to add rental players at the deadline or use the winger’s rights before February 25th to acquire assets that would help Toronto improve in a potential Stanley Cup run.
The worst-case scenario for the Leafs is a devaluation of Nylander as an asset. If the 22-year-old signs and struggles in the remaining 50+ games this season, then that might effect the number of suitors and potential return for him next summer.
If he does not sign and plays in Europe, his value as a player more than likely remains the same, with the only potential drag being the contract demands made by Nylander’s camp, but that could soften if he misses an entire year’s worth of NHL salary.
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