Alex Nylander lands on waivers; here's why a waiver claim is a bad idea for the Leafs

Nylander, 24, was drafted 8th overall to the Buffalo Sabres in the 2016 NHL Entry Draft. Since then, Nylander has only played 84 games in the NHL, struggling to find consistency in his game. His most notable season was with the Chicago Blackhawks in the 2019-20 season, where he played 65 games and tallied 26 points. Nylander has spent the majority of his career in the AHL, playing for the Rochester Americans and Rockford IceHogs.

Nylander was traded from the Hawks to the Pittsburgh Penguins on January 5th, 2022 for Sam Lafferty. Nylander signed a one-year, two-way contract with the Penguins for $750,000. As he hits the waiver wire, it's unclear if he'll clear and return to the Penguins or be viewed as a nice little reclamation project and be claimed.

For the Maple Leafs, I don't believe it's in their best interest to go after the younger brother of their own William Nylander. Although the reunion with his big bro could ignite something within Alex, he has yet to prove he can slot into an NHL lineup and be effective through an 82-game season. As the Leafs should be seen as a contender, I don't see how Nylander can be added to an already deep lineup without risking a downgrade from another competing player like Alex Steeves, Denis Malgin or even Nick Robertson, who is waiver-exempt, but likely deserves to be on the opening night roster.

The Leafs are also facing a bit of a conundrum when it comes to how they're going to manage their cap space once they are at full health. The Buds were already $1.49M over the salary cap before Sandin signed his new deal, which carries a $1.4M cap hit. At least one body will have to move. They're also currently at 49/50 contracts - and that's before Zach Aston-Reese signs, if he is in fact in the running for a depth job in Toronto. Adding Alex Nylander isn't going to help them from a cap or contract count perspective.

Credit : hockeydb, NHL.com