This is very intriguing....
Tkachuk is undeniably the better player in this deal. When not discussing intangibles, there’s an argument for Nylander, and that argument isn’t that strong.
Throwing stats out for this isn’t the best argument ie Tkachuk is a .67 ppg player while Nylander is a .729 over their careers. That’s almost marginal.., with the obvious edge to Nylander.
The intangibles more than make up for that. Tkachuk is someone you want on your team along with hating to play against. There aren’t many skilled players like that in the league anymore. Flames have a gem in Tkachuk... they’re gonna keep him.
Value wise... not good at all. Favors the leafs heavily. This is something only a delusional fan would say no to if you’re the leafs.
For the flames this is not good because it takes away a dimension that they need (grit) and doesn’t really make them better based off of holes in their team. Tkachuk makes them more of a contented than Nylander. Even in the playoffs Tkachuk will be that player to make stuff happen. Based off this past playoffs for Nylander, he looked so hesitant and scared of a hit.
I’m not trying to degrade Nylander in any way... he’s a phenomenal player. A gem in his own right, however, Tkachuk has the higher value.