NHL insiders Darren Dreger and Chris Johnston both stress that there's time for this deal to get done before the NHL All-Star Break and trade deadline.
NHL insiders Darren Dreger and Chris Johnston both stress that there's time for this deal to get done before the NHL All-Star Break and trade deadline.
The reports that the Maple Leafs and William Nylander are nearing the finish line of a contract extension continue.
Toronto and Nylander's camp have been in communication since the 27-year-old was eligible to sign a new deal on July 1. The two sides are reportedly now tiptoeing to the final stages of the negotiation.
TSN insider Darren Dreger joined OverDrive on Wednesday afternoon to discuss how close the deal is to getting done, adding that the annual average value could be north of $11 million.
[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tNXpnUjulzc[/embed]
"(We're) getting closer to the finish line because there's ongoing talks and the two sides — the Maple Leafs and Lewis Gross, who represents Willy Nylander — have been continually talking and I don't think it's been a hard negotiation. I think the Leafs recognize that they've got a star player, borderline superstar player in William Nylander. You just have to go through a process when you're talking about the kind of money that we're talking about," Dreger said on OverDrive.
"So is it imminent? Well, I guess you'd say that but I'm hesitant because we always want to pinpoint a timeline. Is it going to be within a week? Is it a month? What is it? Well, between now and March 8th, the NHL trade deadline, I would say that you could safely say that William Nylander will get a contract extension. But it's not quite there yet.
"The numbers I think have been well speculated on. I mean, the $11 million number, on an annual average salary has been out there for a long time. Eight years times 11, $88 million. I believe it's going to be north of that. I've heard 11.25, which is $90 million. I think it's going to be north of that. I think you're creeping into the low $90 million stratosphere. Maybe as high as 11.5 times eight years, but I don't doubt for a second that it is top priority for the Maple Leafs to get this guy extended."
Another TSN insider, Chris Johnston, revealed on his program, The Chris Johnston Show, that both sides are nearing a deal, though maybe it doesn't happen as quickly as some might expect.
[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2B-LldfrvUU[/embed]
"We are now getting closer to the point where they have to make a deal," Johnston said. "When I say closer, I still think there's time until the trade deadline, even time until the All-Star break, potential sort of soft deadlines you could put in place.
"But there's definitely been a little bit of understanding about where this is headed. Eight years is what we're expecting for the term. I think $11 million, potentially, plus, is basically the range for where the salary is going. And I think that the talks are in a healthy place.
"But as we're recording this, it's been stressed to me from multiple people that this thing ain't done and that there's still a lot, I guess, that needs to fall into place before you're taking the contract to the league, you're having it signed, you're having a press conference, you're smiling and kissing babies, and doing all the things you do when you announce a big contract."
The 27-year-old is having a career year with the Maple Leafs, scoring 51 points (19 goals, 32 assists) in 36 games this season, the fifth-most in the NHL, only behind Artemi Panarin, Connor McDavid, Nathan MacKinnon, and Nikita Kucherov.
Nylander also set a Maple Leafs record for the longest point streak to start a season, which ended at 17 games. Nylander is in the final year of a six-year, $45 million deal he signed in Dec. 2018, making him a free agent on July 1 if a contract doesn't get done with Toronto.
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