The Toronto Maple Leafs are back, baby!
The regular season is gradually reaching the winter break, and the Editor in Leaf staff have been working around the clock to bring you, our loyal readers, right into the middle of the action. Every angle has been covered, and every stone has been overturned.
With so many stories hitting the wall all at once, it’s easy to lose a few in the shuffle. So, enjoy this roundup of this week’s notable pieces.
What Should the Toronto Maple Leafs New Lines Be?
It finally happened, folks.
William Nylander has re-signed with the Leafs, committing to a 6-year deal which carries a cap hit of just a smidge under $7 million per year. Hallelujiah.
No longer must we listen to the cries of him being greedy and a locker room cancer. No longer must we witness the assinine trade proposals plucked purely from imagination. And, best of all, we no longer have to talk about this.
Ever. Again.
The next time you’ll find a Nylander-centric topic pop up, it will be associated with what he’s expected to do on the ice, not off of it. And speaking of what Nylander will do on the ice, his return dictates some line shuffling.
What will the new Leaf lines look like with Willy back in the fold? Well, James speculated about as much in his piece from this week. Check it out.
“Poor Tavares, he’s only scoring at a 56 goal pace. That’s why you’re number 2, Johnny!
Tavares will be paired with Hyman and Marner. It’s OK. They do better on the power play and could use to possess the puck more 5v5. Eventually, the high PDO and low possession numbers will catch up with them.
One way to improve this line would be a left-winger deserving of a top six position. Hyman is nice, but he has no offence, making him essentially useless. Josh Leivo would have been a great addition to this line, but…if Babcock is going to use Marleau on the top line, that means Andreas Johnsson is available for this one.
It won’t happen, but it should.”
Nylander Contract Makes Him Prime Trade Bait
Chief called. He said this ain’t it.
Look, I get what Hunter is trying to convey here. Nylander’s new deal is actually highly tradeable, what with the bulk of his actual dollars being paid to him in signing bonuses up front. But Kyle Dubas has publically reiterated that he has no intention of ever trading Nylander, going so far as to promise him that he’ll never get deal while Dubas remains GM.
Nylander is likely in the clear.
Although, that’s probably what the Raptors told DeMar DeRozan as well, and look what happened to him. It’s not likely, but no one is ever truly safe from a trade.
Allow Hunter to explain why Willy’s contract may necessitate a deal moving forward.
“What many have failed to notice is that the structure of the contract tells a larger story. On July 1, 2019 Nylander will receive an $8.3M signing bonus. After this signing bonus is paid, he will be owed $24.7M over the next 5 seasons. Therefore, while his cap hit will remain at $6.96M, he will only be owed $4.94M/year in real dollars over the rest of his contract.
This outstanding value will serve as a major asset in trade negotiations with teams such as the Carolina Hurricanes who rarely spend anywhere near the cap and would remain undeterred by Nylander’s cap hit of $6.96M. The Leafs would certainly be in a position to garner higher value for Nylander because he is an extremely cost-effective player that provides greater value than his remaining $4.94M/year salary suggests.”
The Cap Rise Could be a Problem for the Toronto Maple Leafs
How could more cap space be a problem? Especially for a team like the Leafs who are going to need all they can get?
Well, Wilbert tells you exactly why, diving deep into inflation, chances of a lockout, and what Seattle’s expansion announcement could mean for the NHL’s salary cap moving forward.
If you love cap talk, this piece is for you. Give it a read.
“Alas, it is not as easy as saying that there will be an extra $3.5 million to spend next year. Literally, you do. Talking contract extensions, however, not so much. Some players/agents aren’t so interested in the exact amount of dollars when it comes to big contracts. They’re more intrigued by the percentage it claims of the cap space.
Reportedly, Auston Matthews is willing to extend during the season. Let’s hope with the possible upcoming rise of the cap and the one to follow with the Seattle expansion, that hasn’t changed for Matthews and his representatives.
More importantly, let’s hope it has not changed the number they might have had in mind already.”
Thanks for reading!