Babcock makes a big statement regarding William Nylander.

There has been a lot of excitement recently in Toronto, and all of it comes off the heels of several American Hockey League call ups who have given fans in Toronto plenty of reason to be excited about the future of the organization.

One big aspect of that recent excitement has been the play of young Swedish forward William Nylander, who after tearing it up in the AHL has embraced the very difficult challenge of playing center in the National Hockey League at such a young age, and at such an early stage in his development.

However one of the major talking points surrounding Nylander has been whether or not the Maple Leafs are prepared to keep him up at the NHL level for more than 10 games, which would of course burn a year of his entry-level deal. On Tuesday Mike Babcock adressed that very topic, and although the actual decision will come fro management, the Leafs head coach gave Nylander a major endorsement.

According to a report from TSN's Mark Masters Babcock has stated he now expects Nylander to remain with the Leafs for the rest of the season, and furthermore added that he believes Nylander could have played for the big club right out of training camp.

It's good news for Leaf fans who want to have a legitimately exciting reason to watch, and it's good news for young William Nylander who according to his coach is NHL ready.

[pub]