Nylander’s Return Ignites Maple Leafs in Win Over Flames
CALGARY - William Nylander wasted no time reminding everyone just how dangerous he can be.
Back in the lineup for just his second game after a groin injury sidelined him for nearly three weeks, Nylander lit the lamp 35 seconds into the game and added two slick assists to power the Toronto Maple Leafs to a 4-2 win over the Calgary Flames on Monday night. The win marked Toronto’s second straight since Nylander’s return - a much-needed jolt for a team that had gone 1-5-1 without him.
“He’s just so good and so dangerous,” said linemate John Tavares. “It’s like the puck’s magnetized to him out there. Great players have that ability to control the game, and right now, everything’s flowing through him.”
And it’s hard to argue. Nylander’s fingerprints were all over this one - from the opening goal to the playmaking that followed.
With Calgary pressing early, a turnover by Jonathan Huberdeau turned into a counterattack. Tavares jumped on the loose puck and sent Nylander in alone.
One quick release later, it was 1-0 Leafs.
“Great play by John,” Nylander said. “We’ve been playing from behind a lot lately, so it was nice to get that one early.”
That early strike set the tone, and Nylander wasn’t done. In the second period, he dished a pinpoint pass to Matias Maccelli to double the lead.
Less than two minutes later, he found Troy Stecher driving to the net during a four-on-four sequence. Stecher finished the play with the kind of poise you don’t always see from a defenseman - and it held up as the game-winner.
“He’s unbelievable, man. I wish I could play that way,” Stecher said, laughing.
“He’s so talented and confident. Even if he makes a mistake, he just keeps coming.
That’s what makes him one of the top guys in the world.”
Leafs head coach Craig Berube singled out that four-on-four goal as a prime example of what Nylander brings to the table.
“That’s a great four-on-four goal,” Berube said. “The movement, the execution - it’s man-on-man out there, and (Stecher) beat his guy to the net.
Willy makes a great pass, and it’s in the back of the net. That’s the kind of dynamic play we’re capable of with him in the lineup.”
Toronto’s offense has clearly missed Nylander’s presence. Despite missing 17 games, he still leads the team with 51 points (18 goals, 33 assists), and he’s producing at a career-best 1.31 points per game - ninth-best in the league.
Tavares, who centers Nylander’s line, credited his winger for driving their success.
“Our line was clicking - a lot of that is driven by him,” Tavares said. “We were strong on pucks, made smart plays through the neutral zone, and when Willy gets the puck in space, he’s as dangerous as anyone in the league.”
This game also carried a little extra meaning for Nylander, who was born in Calgary while his father, Michael, played for the Flames in the mid-1990s. While he doesn’t have memories of his brief time there - “I was only a year-and-a-half,” he said - he’s certainly made the most of his return visits. In 26 career games against the Flames, he’s racked up 36 points (13 goals, 23 assists), including 14 points in his last seven trips to Calgary.
Bobby McMann added an empty-netter to seal the win, and goaltender Joseph Woll turned aside 28 shots to secure the victory. The Leafs now sit just seven points back of the Boston Bruins for the second wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference.
“I have a lot of belief in this team that doesn’t waver,” Woll said. “I see how solid we are defensively and how dynamic we are offensively.
With the systems we have and the guys in this room, I’ve got all the confidence in the world. We’ve just got to keep it rolling.”
Toronto will try to complete a perfect Western Canada road swing Tuesday night in Edmonton - their final game before the Olympic break. With Nylander back in form and the team feeding off his energy, the Leafs are looking like a group that’s ready to make a push.