William Nylander’s Press Box Gesture Has Maple Leafs Fans Fed Up

The Toronto Maple Leafs were once again outclassed by a Western Conference powerhouse on Sunday afternoon at Scotiabank Arena. Coming off a 6-3 home loss to Mitch Marner and the Vegas Golden Knights, Toronto followed it up by getting completely shut down in a 4-1 loss to the Colorado Avalanche.

Frustration was already boiling over with the Maple Leafs now sitting five points out of a wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference. Then came William Nylander’s moment caught on the TSN broadcast during Sunday’s third period, which has only added fuel to the fire among Leafs Nation.

---

While sitting in the press box with his teammates, Nylander noticed the camera on them and decided to pull out the middle finger on live television. It wasn’t the classiest move by the superstar winger, and it didn’t sit well with some fans.

One fan wrote:

“His team’s 17 mins away from losing 6 of 7 & he does this to the camera with that smirk on his face. This guy has got the most slack from fans over the Decade of Disappointment and he hasn’t deserved it. Soft as hell and a floater when he has to pay a price. End this era,”

Nylander has since apologized for his actions with an Instagram story, writing, “Only love for Leafs Nation. Sorry about my moment of frustration today! Didn’t mean to upset anyone. Looking forward to being back on the ice and not in the stands. Love Willy.”

The 29-year-old remains the Maple Leafs’ leading point scorer with 48 points (17 goals, 31 assists) despite having played in only 37 games this season.

Toronto Needs William Nylander Back

After managing to thrive during his initial injury absence, it’s become painfully obvious during this second stint just how much the Maple Leafs miss Nylander’s offense and game-breaking ability.

In the last five games without him, Toronto has gone 1-3-1, scoring just 11 goals in the process — barely averaging over two per game — as their season slowly begins to slip away after a post-Christmas hot streak had inserted them right back into the playoff mix.

The good news is that Nylander returned to the ice over the weekend for the first time since leaving last week’s game in Vegas. That said, there are still hurdles to clear before he’s fully ready to return, and with only five games left before the break, time is quickly running out for him to test his groin out in preparation for representing Sweden at the Olympics.

Next: Does Rumor Chart Linking Morgan Rielly to the Oilers Have Any Legs?