
Prediction #7: This is Frederik Andersen’s Last Year with the Leafs
With four first-round exits already under his belt in his career with the Toronto Maple Leafs, 2020-21 may prove to be Andersen’s most important thus far. While the early playoff exits cannot be solely blamed on the goalie, it is hard to say Andersen has been incredible in any series so far.
It has just seemed as if Andersen has been unable to rise to the occasion for Toronto, which is what lead to management exploring a different look in net for this upcoming season. Now, I do believe the Andersen we saw in the 2019-20 regular season will not be the one we see in 2020-21.
A lot of factors played into the perfect storm that was 2019-20 and the team struggled as a whole. It is hard to envision Andersen not bouncing back, but in any case, his future with the Leafs is not dependant on his work in the regular season. Come playoff time, Andersen holds full control over his destiny.
But even so, I see one of two scenarios playing out and in both, Andersen does not remain a Leaf following this season. One, Andersen has an extremely productive year and is able to secure a long-term contract along the lines of the Jacob Markstrom deal this past offseason where the former Canuck landed six-years at $6 million AAV. At this price tag, Andersen most likely becomes too expensive for the Leafs and the team looks for another option elsewhere.
Or two, Andersen does not have a rebound season and struggles again. In this case, he is unable to secure the long-term contract and instead has to settle for a short-term deal. If Toronto cannot win with him again, Dubas would then look for another option elsewhere.
Regardless, 2020-21 is an extremely important one for the Danish netminder. At the same time, it could very well be his last with the Toronto Maple Leafs.
Prediction #8: William Nylander Continues His Upward Trajectory
One of the very few bright spots of 2019-20 was William Nylander’s fantastic season.
Putting up 31 goals and 59 points in 68 games, Nylander set career highs virtually across the board. When the team struggled to find offense some nights, Keefe often turned to Nylander to be the difference maker and be the spark the team needed (stat; NHL.com).
Nylander also finished with a higher goals above replacement rating than Blake Wheeler, Patrick Kane, and Tyler Seguin (stats; evolving-hockey.com).
Similarly, the narrative surrounding the Swede of being strictly a perimeter player was squashed this past season with Nylander finishing as a league leader in net-front goals. The winger racked up the 8th most individual high danger chances for, showing he is not afraid to get into the dirty areas (stats; naturalstattrick.com).
Solidifying himself as a premier offensive producer this past season, Nylander was on pace for 37 goals had the team played a full 82-game season. It is not of the question that should he keep improving, Nylander could enter the exclusive 40-goal club.
Although 40 goals will be extremely difficult to hit in a shortened season, my prediction is Nylander scores at that pace in 2021. With him growing as a player each year and the shaky defense of most teams in the Canadian division, Nylander should be able to build off his career year.