Sheldon Keefe Publicly Calls Out William Nylander

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James Connelly
December 24, 2023 (12:58)

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Toronto Maple Leafs head coach Sheldon Keefe has taken a shot at William Nylander despite Nylander's point production.

Keefe Calls Out Nylander

Ahead of last night's game versus the Columbus Blue Jackets, Maple Leafs head coach Sheldon Keefe commented on William Nylander's play. As it stands, Nylander leads the Leafs in points with 45 in 31 games.

Keefe however is not impressed by this and has let his true thoughts on Nylander's production be known.

"Probably the biggest thing is that we are coming off a couple of losses here. Despite the fact that Matthews has been scoring consistently, I don't know if I would say Willy has been a huge contributor to those goals. I believe that Auston could still continue to be Auston and work well no matter who we have him with."

Reading between the lines, what Keefe is essentially saying is that Nylander is being carried by Matthews and needs to start producing a bit more.

Keefe's Comments May Screw The Leafs Later On

While Nylander is the Leafs' leading point scorer, he is currently an expiring UFA. If Nylander feels under-appreciated by the Leafs, he may price himself out of a contract with the Leafs.

As it stands, Nylander could easily demand well over $10 million a year and the Leafs may not be able to keep him around at that price tag. This now puts them between a rock and a hard place because if the Leafs do not trade Nylander, they could lose him for nothing but if they do trade him, their core for a playoff run is heavily depleted.

Hopefully, this passes over and the Maple Leafs are able to retain their star forward for the rest of his career.