"We will continue to work away at it quietly in the background," said Maple Leafs GM Brad Treliving on SN590 about the Nylander negotiations Wednesday.
There seems to be some optimism surrounding the William Nylander negotiations.
Prior to the opening of the NHL season on Wednesday, TSN's Hockey Insiders Chris Johnston, Pierre LeBrun, and Darren Dreger joined Geno Reda for an 'Insider Trading' segment. And while they spoke about several topics, the discussion of negotiations between the Maple Leafs and Nylander stood out.
"Some positive vibes coming out of the William Nylander situation in the sense that Nylander [told] my colleague Jonas Siegel of The Athletic last week that he's told his agent, 'keep talking, don't worry about the season starting.' Unlike the last time he had a contract negotiation where he didn't want to have negotiations throughout the year. That won't be the case here," LeBrun said on TSN's Insider Trading.
"And while everyone involved in that Nylander negotiation has been extremely tight-lipped, what I can tell you from what I'm surmising is that everyone is on the same page as far as wanting to continue this dialogue and find that breakthrough and get that extension done for William Nylander.
"But there's no sense that it's imminent. I mean, honestly, whether it takes – a week or a month or the entire season, it could be all of the above."
Nylander started the new season by saying he wants to remain in Toronto but won't answer any more questions regarding the negotiations.
"I want to be here and this is where I want to play," he said. "But I'm going to let my agent (Lewis Gross) and Brad (Maple Leafs GM Brad Treliving take care of that and I'm not going to answer any more questions about my contract."
The 27-year-old is entering the final year of a six-year, $45-million contract he signed in 2018. It was reported earlier in the summer that both sides weren't close on a number for Nylander's next contract. However, it's good to hear that the 27-year-old's agent will be negating with Toronto during the season.
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