Toronto Maple Leafs, William Nylander Meeting In Switzerland

In all war-time negotiations, both sides usually like to find a neutral meeting place for any peace negotiations to limit the leverage for one group or the other. It’s apparently no different in contract talks, as Lance Hornby of Postmedia reports that the Toronto Maple Leafs and William Nylander’s camp will meet in Switzerland today. Though there’s little indication of what exactly will take place at the meeting, just the fact that the two sides are getting together has to be a positive sign in what has turned into quite a lengthy contract negotiation.

Nylander of course remains without a contract while the Maple Leafs roll through opponents, off to a 6-1 start by scoring the league’s most goals. Kasperi Kapanen has taken Nylander’s usual spot on the right side of Auston Matthews and looked like a star himself, though he’s adamant that he isn’t trying to replace his good friend. The Maple Leafs would obviously like to have Nylander back in the lineup, but at their price given the upcoming contract negotiations with Matthews and Mitch Marner. The team has to worry about getting everyone signed and under the cap, something that assistant GM Brandon Pridham will have worked out various scenarios for.

Though there have been reports of the Maple Leafs offering a long-term contract in the low $6MM range and Nylander’s camp countering with something approaching $8MM per season, Nick Kypreos of Sportsnet added recently that the team had made a four-year offer as well. That deal would see Nylander’s cap hit drop to somewhere between $4-5MM, and keep him a restricted free agent at its conclusion. Hornby and his source have no information on whether the Switzerland meeting is to work out a deal like that, or just to touch base with a player who is still important to the organization.