NHL analyst plays down $92,800,000 Maple Leafs star's chances of joining Leon Draisaitl's 50-goal club

NHL analyst Martin Biron believes William Nylander, who is in the midst of a $92,800,000 deal with the Toronto Maple Leafs (Spotrac), won't reach 50 goals this season.

Biron thinks Nylander won't join Edmonton Oilers center Leon Draisaitl's club of 50-goal scorers. Nylander has 42 goals with eight games left, and Biron says that’s too much to ask. Nylander would need to score a goal per game to hit 50, which is a tall order.

On TSN's Hot or Not, Biron said Leon Draisaitl will be the only player to hit 50 goals this year. Draisaitl has already scored 51 goals in 69 games. He is the only player in the league with four 50-goal seasons, joining Alex Ovechkin in that group. Biron expects Draisaitl to keep scoring and finish the season as the only 50-goal scorer:

"I don’t see anybody else getting to that beautiful number—50. Look, William Nylander is at 42 goals with eight games left. He would need to score a goal a game, and while he’s been playing well, he’s only scored five in his last eight.

"So you're looking at eight goals in eight games—that’s a lot. And nobody else is even at 40 goals right now. The only guy who could maybe make a late push is still too far behind. So, hot—Draisaitl will be the only 50-goal scorer in the NHL this season."

Draisaitl’s goal-scoring is impressive, especially after missing four games due to injury. In his return, he scored both the tying and game-winning goals in an overtime win against the Calgary Flames. Despite being known for his passing, Draisaitl’s shot is one of the hardest to stop in the NHL.

Teammates praised Leon Draisaitl’s scoring ability

Darnell Nurse and Zach Hyman also praised Leon Draisaitl for his scoring ability. Nurse said Draisaitl’s vision and ability to find space made him a rare pass-first 50-goal scorer.

“There’s not many pass-first 50-goal scorers,” Nurse said (via NHL.com). “He’s one of them. I think obviously his vision for the game, the way he sees the game is second-to-none.”

Hyman mentioned that Draisaitl led in every offensive category, excluding empty-net goals.

“Imagine if we just got a little better at empty nets,” Hyman said. “If you take out the empty-net goals, he's leading in every offensive category.”

Leon Draisaitl is on track to finish as the NHL's top goal scorer.