Toronto Maple Leafs: 4 Reasons Why There Is 0% Chance of a Nylander Trade

TORONTO, ON - DECEMBER 6: William Nylander #29 of the Toronto Maple Leafs skates with the puck against the Detroit Red Wings during the third period at the Scotiabank Arena on December 6, 2018 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. (Photo by Kevin Sousa/NHLI via Getty Images)
TORONTO, ON - DECEMBER 6: William Nylander #29 of the Toronto Maple Leafs skates with the puck against the Detroit Red Wings during the third period at the Scotiabank Arena on December 6, 2018 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. (Photo by Kevin Sousa/NHLI via Getty Images)
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TORONTO, ON – APRIL 04: William Nylander #29 of the Toronto Maple Leafs takes the ice against the Tampa Bay Lightning at the Scotiabank Arena on April 4, 2019 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. (Photo by Mark Blinch/NHLI via Getty Images)
TORONTO, ON – APRIL 04: William Nylander #29 of the Toronto Maple Leafs takes the ice against the Tampa Bay Lightning at the Scotiabank Arena on April 4, 2019 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. (Photo by Mark Blinch/NHLI via Getty Images)

William Nylander

I don’t think Kyle Dubas is an idiot.

But only an idiot would trade a 22 year old forward with potential like Nylander after a season when his totals are low and his value is down significantly from where it should be.   So you can guarantee it won’t happen.

Nylander played 54 games had 7 goals and 27 points this season.  Those aren’t very good totals, but we know from past seasons that he usually scores significantly more.  And,  there are extenuating circumstances.(All stats for this article from naturalstattrick.com and 5v5 unless indicated).

First, his on-ice shooting percentage was only 7.69%  and that is low.

Second, his personal shooting percentage was 5% which is also really low, and just incredibly unlucky – in the 190 other games Nylander has played in the NHL, he’s shooting 10%, so we know for a fact this is just random bad luck.

Third, Nylander sat out until December and didn’t really start playing well until the middle of January and early February.  This kept his numbers down.

If you take all this together, then you what you have is a very good excuse for his low totals, as well as near certainty that they will go back up to expected levels.