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The 2022-23 NHL season has officially come to a close with the Vegas Golden Knights winning their first Stanley Cup in franchise history. As the offseason officially begins, 31 other franchises now have the task of getting to Vegas' level. And there's no team that's more true for than the Toronto Maple Leafs.
Despite Toronto ending its 19-year streak without a playoff series win, it was another year of postseason disappointment. After defeating the Tampa Bay Lightning in the first round, the Leafs fell to the Florida Panthers in the second. To make matters worse, they watched as yet another team that beat them made a deep run to the Stanley Cup Final.
After another disappointing playoff performance, there are several big questions surrounding the Leafs. They've already moved on from general manager Kyle Dubas, replacing him with former Calgary Flames executive Brad Treliving. Additionally, there are even rumors circulating about the future of the Leafs' star forwards.
Toronto most likely won't trade the face of their franchise in Auston Matthews, even with only one year left on his contract and a massive decision on his future looming. John Tavares likely also won't be going anywhere, as his $11 million cap hit for a 32-year-old player is very hard to move. That means if one of the “Core Four” is to go, it's likely either Mitchell Marner or William Nylander. With Nylander having a much lower cap hit and only one year left on his contract as opposed to two, he may be the likeliest trade candidate.
That begs the question; if the Leafs do decide to trade Nylander, where might he end up? Without further ado, here are the three best trade destinations for the star winger.
3. Washington Capitals
The future of the Washington Capitals will be quite interesting to watch. They are coming off a poor season by their standards where they missed the playoffs for the first time since 2014 and even sold at the trade deadline. However, it seems unlikely they will enter a full rebuild while Alex Ovechkin is still there. If they want to compete, though, they'll have to give their roster a bit of a shakeup.
Acquiring Nylander would certainly be a shakeup, albeit a very pricey one. The 27-year-old forward would be a nice jolt of (relative) youth for one of the oldest teams in the league. Additionally, this move would reunite Nylander with his close friend and fellow Swede in defenseman Rasmus Sandin, whom Washington acquired from Toronto at the deadline.
As for the return, the Leafs may target Toronto-native winger Tom Wilson. The 29-year old is on a manageable $5.17 million cap hit for just next season, and plays with a physical edge the Leafs have sorely lacked in recent seasons. While he may not be quite as offensively gifted as William Nylander, he can still score effectively and his play style would give the Leafs a new dimension to their game.
2. Calgary Flames
Could Treliving be open to doing business with his old team? If so, Nylander going to the Calgary Flames could make some sense. The Canadian-born Swede was born in Calgary when his father Michael was playing for the Flames, so it could come full circle.
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After losing Johnny Gaudreau and Matthew Tkachuk last offseason, the Flames did well to get Jonathan Huberdeau and Nazem Kadri as new stars. Unfortunately, those new stars underperformed and Calgary missed the playoffs. With a new head coach in Ryan Huska and a new GM in Craig Conroy, the Flames should be aggressive in improving their roster this offseason.
Toronto may be eyeing a specific player from Calgary: center Elias Lindholm. The 28-year-old is a strong two-way player and penalty killer, even finishing as a Selke finalist last season. He's also on a bargain contract, with a cap hit of just $4.85 million next season.
The one snag with this idea is that William Nylander has a 10-team no-trade clause kicking in on July 1, and it wouldn't be surprising if Calgary was on that list. However, if the Flames aren't on that list (or a deal happens sooner), this move makes sense.
1. Colorado Avalanche
If Nylander wants to leave and go to a surefire contender, then the Colorado Avalanche are the premier destination. The Avalanche just won the Stanley Cup a year ago and had another strong season this year, despite losing to the Seattle Kraken in the first round of the playoffs. However, they have some needs to fill if they want to get back to those highs.
Colorado received devastating news when it came out that captain Gabriel Landeskog, who already missed the entire 2022-23 season, would miss all of next season as well. While a major loss, placing Landeskog on LTIR gives the Avalanche an extra $7 million in cap space. And what do you know, Nylander makes just under $7 million. He should fit in with the Avs right away and bring some extra punch to the offense.
Additionally, this may be the best-case scenario for the Leafs if they can get a defenseman back. The top target would be Devon Toews, a do-it-all blue-liner who could be a No. 1 defender for most other teams. The 29-year-old is also on an absolute steal of a contract with just a $4.1-million cap hit for next season. Landing Bowen Byram or Samuel Girard would also be a huge win for Toronto as both are young, promising defensemen.
William Nylander is a very talented player, and if available, there will be a bidding war for him. If the Avs come calling, though, they should be the easy favorites in that bidding war.
