Toronto Maple Leafs: 3 questions for the upcoming games
By Paul Taylor
2) When will William Nylander start producing points?
No one doubts William Nylander is an excellent talent, with intriguing upside. However, a lot of people still believed he wasn’t worth the $8 million he was apparently asking for.
In the end, the Leafs agreed a deal with Nylander which will be worth 6.9 million annually after this season. Fair or not, this is still too much for some critics, based on what he has produced so far during his young career.
With this said, it is up to the 22-year-old to prove his worth on the ice. And the early returns have been disappointing.
Nyladner made his season debut last Thursday night, against the Detroit Red Wings. Despite the team scoring four goals in an overtime loss, he did not produce any points; in fact, he didn’t even register a shot on goal.
The winger looked rusty, unable to link up effectively with him teammates in just 12:39 of ice time, as coach Mike Babcock attempted to ease him back into the action. In fairness, rust was to be expected in his season debut, especially as it was his first game of any kind since April.
In addition, Nylander hadn’t even got to practice with his teammates prior to facing the Red Wings. The team bus broke down on the way back from Buffalo, resulting in last Wednesday’s practice being cancelled.
Regardless, the Swedish international’s next game on Saturday night against the Bruins wasn’t much better. While he at least registered three shots at goal, he again produced no points, this time in 16:30 of action.
Now you could argue that Nylander was impacted by the car accident he and teammate Kasperi Kapanen were involved in on Friday afternoon. While he wasn’t injured, it’s entirely possible he was affected in some way, whether it be delayed shock or whatever.
In truth, it’s unsurprising the 2014 eighth overall draft pick has done little in his first two games of the season, when considering all the unsettling contributing factors. However, he’s still only going to get a certain amount of leeway.
There is a major amount of expectation and pressure that comes with the contract extension Nylander has signed with the Leafs. He has to start producing soon, or he can expect that expectation and pressure to increase considerably.