Through the first seven games of the NHL season, William Nylander remains unsigned by the Toronto Maple Leafs, and as a result, the rumor mill continues to churn — the holder of Nylander’s rights in the KHL even commented on the possibility of bringing him over.
Meanwhile, on Wednesday, TSN’s Darren Dreger reports that Kyle Dubas will meet with Nylander and his reps in Switzerland, in an effort to move talks along.
The rich would only get richer, if a Leafs team that leads the league is able to add Nylander into their depth chart. However, Pierre LeBrun has also raised another interesting possibility — if the Leafs aren’t able to find middle ground with Nylander, would they consider trading the forward?
In an appearance on Insider Trading, LeBrun reports that at least one team, the Carolina Hurricanes, are interested in Nylander’s services.
LeBrun suggests that Brett Pesce, the Hurricanes’ 23-year-old defenseman, is the player that the Leafs would target in a Nylander trade. Certainly, with their offense looking how it has this season, it makes sense to reallocate some assets over to defense. LeBrun also published a column on the possibility of a Nylander trade at The Athletic.
Dubas’ preference is still against trading Nylander, but the clock is ticking on his NHL eligibility for this season — he must sign by December 1. If the Leafs can get him to agree before then, maybe Mike Babcock will finally clue fans in on what his line combinations will look like.
