Lauren Kelly:
Honestly, the Toronto Maple Leafs would probably be better off having one of Nylander or Marner down the middle in the future, but as of right now, Matthews and Nylander have too much chemistry to split them up..
Plus, as bad as they can be in their own end, JVR-Bozak-Marner was dynamite for the Leafs, putting up crazy points all season long.
The Leafs don’t seem to be in any rush to move either player to the centre ice position, and I agree. While they both had monster rookie seasons, Nylander and Marner still need at least another year before they play centre, because everyone knows it’s a totally different position than being a winger.
If the Leafs were to move one of them, I’d rather it be Nylander because that’s the position he grew up playing and is slightly better at faceoffs, while Marner only started playing centre in London a couple seasons ago.
Bozak’s contract is up at the end of next season, so this should be the season they ease one of Nylander/Marner into the middle of the ice if they don’t plan on resigning him. But for now, the Leafs should play it safe and stick with Bozak.