Although rumors about the forward surfaced over the summer, signing Williams Nylander remains on Toronto Maple Leafs general manager Brad Treliving’s shopping list.
The CEO was invited by journalists on Wednesday to comment on the file of the hockey player, who could receive unrestricted free agent status next year, and wants to retain the services of the 27-year-old winger, who will also move to center at the start of camp. ‘Education. Finally, he remains a talented athlete, as he scored 40 goals and 47 assists for 87 points in 82 games last season.
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“We want to sign Willy, that’s a priority. “He is a very good player and you always intend to keep your good players,” Treliving said. We talked: He wants to stay here and usually that’s a good start [pour les négociations]. So we will try to solve this problem. “Communication channels remain open and we will work with his agent Lewis Gross to see where this leads.”
Nylander will sign a six-year, $41.4 million contract. A few weeks ago, Sportsnet hockey expert Elliotte Friedman reported that the Leafs had considered trading him, but that the compensation offered by the other clubs was not sufficiently satisfactory in their eyes.
However, as the website NHL.com pointed out, the player does not necessarily intend to leave for other countries in 2024.
“There are no other places I want to play but I still have a year on contract. I don’t understand why there’s such a rush,” he said recently.