TORONTO — William Nylander leads or co-leads the Toronto Maple Leafs in all major statistical categories, yet the man who signed the richest contract in club history is still hungry for more.
Shifts.
And he is letting coach Craig Berube know it.
“That is a little bit what I’ve been trying to talk to Chief about,” Nylander revealed Thursday, before another two-goal show in a 4-1 cruise over the Seattle Kraken. “To get that ice time back to where it was before. I think it helps my game a lot (and helps me) do what I want to be able to do out there. So, yeah, hopefully, that’s something we can figure out.”
Despite Nylander’s public plea for more work — a rarity in this do-whatever-coach-wants team culture — his time on ice clocked in under 18 minutes for the sixth time this season.
At 17:58, he is averaging nearly two minutes fewer than he did last season under Sheldon Keefe (19:55).
He is still third — to top-liners Mitch Marner (21:37) and Auston Matthews (20:46) — among Leafs forwards, but Marner and Matthews’ ice time hasn’t wavered nearly as much.
The extra rest has hardly hindered Nylander’s production; he tops the Leafs in goals (eight), points (12), plus/minus (+7), and game-winners (two).
Yet it’s hardly surprising that a fashion-forward, crisscrossing dynamo nicknamed “Willy Styles” might take a minute to get on the same page as a straight-line, dump-and-chase proponent of the grind they call “Chief.”
“I have no problem with it,” Berube said of Nylander’s request. “I do try and get him more. We talk about it. He killed penalties last year. He’s not killing penalties this year, so that’s a little bit of ice time there that’s off. What I do is I try and get him out there — if deserved — as much as I can.”
That is true.
Because Nylander has been the engine of Toronto’s most dangerous line — with John Tavares and Max Pacioretty — in this week’s convincing wins over Winnipeg and Seattle, Berube has slipped in some double shifts at even strength for 88.
But the removal of penalty-killing duties (especially on a team so guilty of taking minors) and a (temporary?) drop to the second power-play unit has robbed Nylander of special-teams shifts.
“PKing is fun. It’s good to get in the game that way, I mean, if there’s a lot of penalties and stuff like that. It will keep you going,” Nylander said. “Of course I miss PKing.”
In another 0-for-2 power-play night for Toronto, Nylander saw roughly 40 seconds fewer on the man-advantage than the first-unit guys. This, despite wielding the hottest and most active stick (game-high six shots) in the game. Despite leading all Leafs with 35 power-play points last season.
“He’s playing great,” Tavares beamed. “He’s producing really well, and he’s always pushing to be better, and obviously wants to be a key contributor in all areas. He’s grown a lot and become a big leader for us, in a lot of different ways.”
We don’t imagine Nylander suddenly being satisfied with 18 minutes.
We don’t foresee Berube abandoning his team-first, roll-the-lines philosophy to make sure the star nears 20 either, especially as the coach strives to bridge the gap between this room’s superstars and its middle-class.
The objective: Find roles for everyone, with an eye toward the playoffs, while still winning up games to get there in strong position.
The coach smiled knowingly when asked for the ideal amount of clock he’d like to get for his talented winger.
“I don’t focus on ice time so much. I mean, I get Willy out there quite a bit,” Berube said.
“A lot of key situations, obviously. But at the same time — I’ve said this all along — we want to be a good team. Everybody needs to be involved. So, I try to get Willy out there as much as I can.”
On nights like this one, where Nylander stars and the team wins handily, nitpicking ice time should feel like a nonissue.
But there is a slight philosophical gap here. We’ll see how swiftly this gets bridged.
Fox’s Fast Five
• No one imagined it would take projected No. 1 goalie Joseph Woll until the final night of October to secure his first win of the season, but good things are worth waiting for.
“Now I understand there’s things you can control, and there’s things you can’t, and sometimes with injuries like that, you can’t really control much,” Woll said.
“Naturally, there’s a little bit of emotion and disappointment and frustration and stuff when you do get hurt. And as much as I can, I try to allow myself to feel those things and be human for a bit. And then you have to turn the page and look to what’s important to do that day.”
We’d like to see Woll get the start Saturday in his hometown St. Louis — “That’d be pretty special, so looking forward to it,” he says — and keep Anthony Stolarz fresh for a sharp Minnesota team Sunday.
• Timothy Liljegren was in the middle of making dinner Wednesday when he learned he’d been dealt to the San Jose Sharks.
He soon fielded well-wishing phone calls from Nylander, Morgan Rielly and others.
“I mean, you’re losing a friend right away. That’s the hardest thing,” said Bobby McMann, who played with the D-man in both the AHL and NHL.
“We’ve been friends for a long time,” Nylander added. “He’s been here for a while, but that’s the business. He’ll get a great opportunity there, and it’ll be good for his career. So, I’m happy for him.”
Liljegren should be excited by the playing path not so clogged by established veterans — and the promise of more ice time.
“That’s what everyone wants,” Nylander said.
• The undrafted Tanev brothers spent time with family and friends Wednesday ahead of their first head-to-head showdown in their hometown, at which 40-some relatives turned up to witness the sibling rivalry.
They reminisced over their road hockey days, when the older Chris would pretend to be Steve Yzerman and the younger Brandon would imagine himself as Mike Modano.
“He was definitely more of a troublemaker than me,” Chris said, smiling. “So, I think I might take the favourite kid over him, anyways.”
“That’s probably correct,” Brandon conceded. “Especially being from Toronto, and him wearing the Leafs jersey, I think the family will be cheering for him tonight.”
• The Maple Leafs are still the most valuable franchise in the NHL.
According to Sportico’s annual estimates, the Leafs are worth $3.66 billion — a 38 per cent increase year over year. The New York Rangers ($3.25 billion), Montreal Canadiens ($2.93 billion), Boston Bruins ($2.67 billion), and L.A. Kings ($2.5 billion) round out the top five.
The Utah Hockey Club saw the greatest gain, moving from 32nd to 28th overall and up a whopping 78 per cent (to $1.2 billion) since leaving Arizona.
• Marner memorably fired off a text message to Shane Wright after the 2022 draft, when the latter surprisingly tumbled to Seattle: Nothing wrong with going fourth.
Marner, of course, went fourth in 2015 and turned out fine.
“It means so much coming from a guy like him,” Wright, a Burlington, Ont., native told reporters in the Scotiabank Arena visitors’ room. “Just having his support and having him reach out and text me that is pretty cool.
“Any time you get a text like that from a guy like him, it’s going to resonate. It’s going to stick in your head. It’s always something you’re thinking about.”
Wright, who is centring the Kraken’s third line, has already set an NHL career high in games played, appearing in all 11 this season.
He maxed out at eight in 2022-23, before returning to the OHL, and again in 2023-24, before starring in AHL Coachella Valley.
