Toronto Maple Leafs

Even If Maple Leafs’ William Nylander Isn’t Your Favorite, He’s Amazing

William Nylander is a polarizing player. Not all Maple Leafs fans like him. That said, he’s amazing. What has he done for the team?

by
Old Prof
May 10, 2021

I get it. The Toronto Maple Leafs’ William Nylander isn’t everyone’s favorite player on the team. In fact, over the three seasons that I’ve covered the Maple Leafs, hear from fans and know that they find him one of the most polarizing players on the entire team.

Even hard-core Maple Leaf fans find him tough to appreciate. Some even call for him be traded. Some say he’s too soft. Some say he floats on the ice and shies away from the tough places. Some say he seems disinterested. And, recently, when Nylander missed a meeting and it was first reported that he was going to be benched as punishment, the critics lined up yet again.

Think What You Want, Nylander Is a Great Young Hockey Player

All that said, one thing that you have to give the young Swede credit for being an amazing hockey player. He can flat out score. And, except for the 2018-19 contract-battled season where he started late and played poorly, as you can see below he’s gotten better every season.

Nylander Is a Streaky Scorer

Last season, Nylander scored 31 goals; and, this season he’s been on a similar pace. He’s a streaky shooter scorer, but this season his streaks seem to be getting longer and the space between them seems to be growing shorter.

With his goal on Saturday night against the Montreal Canadiens, Nylander stretched his current point streak to seven straight games (with three goals and four assists in those games). He’s also scored in 11 of his last 12 (four goals and 11 assists). That gives him 17 goals and 24 assists (for 41 points) in 49 games on the season. That’s a nice contribution to the team.

Nylander Finishes Off a Great Passing Play

For example, the video below shows Nylander partnering with teammates to finish a really nice tic-tac-toe passing play to score the game-tying goal against the Canadiens.

During Nylander’s Tenure, the Team Moved from Last to First

After the game, Nylander noted, ”We’ve come a long way. It’s been a long process and a lot of hard work. This is just a stepping-stone for where we want to go.”

When I hear that comment, I’m guessing that this division-clinching win is special to Nylander because he’s one of the remaining Maple Leafs’ players who played on the team when it finished in last place at the end of the 2015-16 season.

On that team, Nylander and Morgan Rielly were two of a very few young stars, and both have watched the Maple Leafs grow into a different team in 2020-21 than it was in 2015-16. I’m guessing it’s been a special trip for those two youngsters.

Even If You Don’t Like Him, Cheer Him On

Now, we’ll see what Nylander can do during the playoffs. Whatever he does, if you’re a Maple Leafs fan you don’t have to like him; however, you still should cheer when he scores.

Personally, I find him an acquired taste.