William Nylander is getting a clean slate with the Toronto Maple Leafs, according to Elliotte Friedman.
Friedman said this week that last season was a genuinely tough one between Nylander and the organization, but stressed everybody gets a fresh start.
Nylander still put up 79 points in 65 games this season, scoring 30 goals despite whatever tension existed behind the scenes.
He finished at a minus-14, and Toronto closed the year 32-36-14 for 78 points, sitting 28th overall in a brutal finish.
Over his last 10 games, Nylander produced 12 points, proof his offensive game never really slowed down no matter what was happening off the ice.
Toronto also dropped its final seven games in a row, a stretch that puts every storyline from last season under a microscope.
Friedman didn't sugarcoat it on 32 Thoughts, framing the Nylander situation as real friction that both sides need to move past.
-
Jim Hiller's arrival gives Nylander a clean slate in Toronto
New coach Jim Hiller took over behind the Toronto bench in June, and how he handles Nylander early will say a lot about whether the fresh start actually sticks.
Nylander's $11,500,000 cap hit isn't going anywhere, so the Maple Leafs need him producing at a top-line level no matter what happened last year.
Toronto went 18-15-8 at home but fell to 14-21-6 on the road, a split that suggests the problems ran deeper than one player and one front office.
Calling it a tough year is a polite way of saying something didn't sit right, and Toronto can't afford a repeat with this roster already trending the wrong way.
Friedman didn't get into specifics about what actually went wrong between Nylander and the organization.
Whether that stays buried past training camp, or resurfaces the moment results go sideways again, is the real question nobody's answering yet.
Do you believe William Nylander and the Maple Leafs really get a clean fresh start?
Also read on Markerzone.com:
Chicago Blackhawks eye blockbuster trade for Elias Pettersson
