William Nylander has been lobbying for more ice-time
William Nylander has spoke out about his decrease in ice-time and has expressed a desire for more time on the ice. "That is a little bit what I've been trying t
Though it seems kind of jokey in nature, the Toronto Maple Leafs new coach Craig Berube is having his first public feud with one of his players.
Toronto Maple Leafs forward, superstar goal-scorer, elite NHL all-star, 40 goal scorer and possible top-five NHL winger William Nylander has spoke out about his decrease in ice-time this season and has expressed a desire to play more.
It is somewhat odd that Nylander would say this publicly, but he so charming and charismatic that it almost seems like he's joking. (all stats naturalstattrick.com).
But we know he isn't - he really does want to play more, and that can only be a good thing for the Leafs.
William Nylander has been lobbying for more ice-time
Nylander has averaged 18:01 of ice time thus far this season, down almost 2:00 a game, after averaging a career-high 19:55 on the ice last season.
Head coach Craig Berube was asked about Nylander's decrease in ice time this season, and said he tries to get him out there "as much as possible" while also pointing out that it's a team game and he's got a lot to balance.
Nylander hasn't been playing on the penalty kill this season and has also recently been bumped down to the teams second powerplay unit (not as punishment, but as a desperate attempt to get it going) - two things that have definitely impacted his decrease in ice time.
When asked about not being on the penalty kill this season, the Leafs winger said he would like to get back in the rotation, but Keefe is already using both Marner and Matthews on his PK and may not be interested in also using Nylander in such a role.
Nylander had a career year last year, starting the season on a 17-game point streak and ended up finishing the season with a career high 98 points. His strong start to the season earned him a contract extension in January, with that contract coming into effect this season.
This is the first year of Nylander's eight-year, $92M contract. The deal includes a full no-trade clause and it is the largest total value deal in Toronto Maple Leafs history.
Craig Berube, on the other hand, is in his first year as head coach of the Maple Leafs after inking a four-year contract in the offseason.
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Maple Leafs fans are all too familiar with this teams lack of playoff success, and Berube was brought in to turn that around , and although early into his Leafs coaching tenure, it is very clear he is willing to try whatever he has to in order to get results. That said, it wouldn't hurt to play Nylander more, as he has pretty much been the team's best player this year so far.