Toronto Maple Leafs: Questions Left to Be Answered in 2016

Should They Bring Up William Nylander?

At the beginning of the season there was no doubt that the decision to send Nylander to the AHL was the right one, especially with the way that the he has performed with the Marlies. He has 34 points in 27 games playing at the age of 19 in a league that is usually dominated by players over the age of 20. He currently sits second in AHL scoring behind leading scorer Travis Morin of the Texas Stars who has scored 35 points in 36 games. Nylander has played nine fewer games and sits only one point back, though. Nylander has shown that he can be a responsible player because he does not take a lot of penalties and does not turn the puck over a lot.

There are a lot of benefits to having Nylander play in the AHL even though he probably could make the jump to the NHL.

He is playing top line minutes with the Marlies where head coach Sheldon Keefe is working on making him a complete player, not just a strong offensive player.

Can he learn that at the NHL level with Babcock? Sure. But the whole point of Nylander being in the AHL is to to be patient with his development because the NHL is not a developmental league.

The other thing to consider is the fact that Nylander is on an entry level deal so if he plays more than 10 games the Leafs lose a year on his entry level contract. There is no use in wasting a year on Nylander’s deal if the team is not in a position to compete.

The other thing to consider with Nylander is the concussion that he suffered at the World Juniors. It was first reported that the injury would not keep Nylander out for the rest of the tournament. However, when it was confirmed that Nylander would return to Toronto it brought out fear that his recovery will take time. How long? It is really tough to say especially because of Nylander’s age. This is what the Sports Concussion Institute had to say about athletes receiving concussions especially at a young age.

"There are distinct differences in age when it comes to managing sport related concussions. Recent research demonstrates that high school athletes not only take longer to recover after a concussion when compared to collegiate or professional athletes, but they also may experience greater severity of symptoms and more neurological disturbances as measured by neuropsychological and postural stability tests. Because the frontal lobes of the human brain continue to develop until age 25, it is vital to manage youth concussions very conservatively to ensure optimal neurological development and outcomes. Research suggests that if someone has already received one concussion, they are 1-2 times more likely to receive a second one. If they’ve had two concussions, then a third is 2-4 times more likely, and if they’ve had three concussions, then they are 3-9 times more likely to receive their fourth concussion."

While not every situation is the same when it comes to concussions, Nylander is still in that group of young athletes whose brain is not fully developed. So while he may hope to play for the Leafs this season his number one priority should be to get healthy. Then he can prove once again that he deserves to get some playing time in the NHL at some point near the end of the season.

Next: How Active Will the Leafs be at the Trade Deadline?