Devils use devious negotiating tactic to get Jesper Bratt signed; the Leafs should use this same tactic with Nylander

The last time Bratt and the Devils negotiated, reports indicated that they were very tense and according to Elliotte Friedman, the Devils gave Bratt an ultimatum this time. On yesterday's 32 Thoughts podcast, Friedman reported that the Devils told Bratt and his agent that if they didn't get a commitment, they were going to explore the trade market for him.

As it turns out, this tactic worked well for Devils GM Tom Fitzgerald, who got Bratt signed to a deal that works for both sides. That's exactly what the Leafs and Brad Treliving need to do with William Nylander, in my opinion.

Treliving is tasked with handling the Nylander and Matthews extensions, but has a spotty relationship with Nylander's agent Lewis Gross. Gross also represents Johnny Gaudreau, who eventually departed Calgary for Columbus. Treliving likely doesn't want a repeat of that with Nylander and would be smart to follow in the Devils' footsteps and give Nylander the same ultimatum of sign now or move on.

Nylander's situation differs from Matthews in that his trade protection is very limited. Nylander has no trade protection at all until July 1st and when that date arrives, he'll be able to submit a 10-team no-trade list to Treliving, which still leaves Treliving with 21 other teams with which to negotiate a deal. Nylander also differs from Bratt in that Nylander will be a UFA next summer, whereas Bratt was an RFA this summer. As we know, UFA years cost more than RFA years, so the Leafs will have to keep that in mind as well.

Obviously, things are going to start to open up here very shortly, as free agency is just 2 weeks away as of today. If Nylander wants to stay in Toronto as much as he says he does, then perhaps presenting him with that type of ultimatum in the days following July 1st (if he doesn't sign on July 1st) will be a good way to test his loyalty to the organization. If he wants to stay, he'll re-sign quickly. If he is unsure, then at least Treliving can get more value for him as a trade chip this summer than he will at the deadline.