If you have spent any time to play William Nylander this season for the Toronto Maple Leafs, it would be pretty easy to make the case that he has ever seen.
While he scored 19 points of his career high of 98 points last season with just eight games for Toronto, one could argue that this was Nylander's most dynamic offensive year.
With a career high of 42 goals that take it in second place in the entire NHL behind Edmonton's Leon Draisaitl, Nylander passed through a driving force behind Torontos throughout the season.
And it turns out that he actually set up a Leafs record last week, even though there is not much fanfare on it.
With Nylanders 42. He achieved a checked Country Mat sundin for the best sending of one-sowing in Leaf history of a European player in a 6: 5 shootout against the San Jose Sharks. Sundin was exceeded in 1996-97 with 41 in the 2001-02 seasons to reach an earlier brand of 32 from Czech wing player Miroslav Frycer in 1986.
(For those interested in history: The striker Nikolai Borschevsky, born in Russia, had 34 goals in his rookie NHL season in 1993-94, but he actually comes from the part of the country claimed by Asia.)
In view of the fact that Sundin is one of the most popular players in the franchise story – and is both a retired jersey and a statue outside the Scotiabank Arena in Legends Row, it is a pretty good company to find Nylander.
Although Nylander was actually born in Calgary, while his father Michael was in the middle of his NHL career on the flames, he is always represented internationally in Sweden, even during the 4 nations nations in February.
And while European players are now an obvious staple of every NHL team, it wasn't that long ago when Borje Salming became the first in the team history and came to the franchise in 1973. Nylander is one of four current Swedes on Toronto's squad, together with Oliver Ekman-Larsson, Pontus Holmberg, Calle, and Calle Jarnle. Team.
Auston Matthews, born in Americans, naturally has the two best places in the Leafs in terms of scoring and scored 60 and 69 goals in 2012-22 and 2023-24.
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