William Nylander reveals what sidelined him for multiple games at start of Leafs-Bruins series

By Arnab Mondal

Modified May 05, 2024 12:16 GMT

During the high-stakes playoff series between the Toronto Maple Leafs and the Boston Bruins, William Nylander’s absence in the initial games fueled speculation about his whereabouts.

However, following Toronto's heart-wrenching 2-1 overtime loss in Game 7 on Saturday, Nylander disclosed that he grappled with a debilitating migraine issue, which caused him to miss the first three games of the series. He said:

"I don't know what it was exactly. They (Leafs medical staff) just kept me (out) precautionarily to figure out what was going on. Had a migraine but in case it could have been a concussion. Once I started feeling better, they let me play."

When asked about the difficulty of playing hockey with a migraine, the Leafs forward said:

"This situation is very complicated. It's hard to explain exactly what it is. My vision goes, I can't really see out of my eyes. It's messed up so, yeah, it's hard to play with."

Despite this adversity, in Game 7, William Nylander scored a goal to give the Leafs the lead in the third period, making it 1-0. However, Boston’s Hampus Lindholm swiftly equalized a minute later, setting the stage for David Pastrnak's heartbreaking overtime winner, which dashed Toronto’s hopes.

With three goals in four games, William Nylander led the Leafs in scoring during the series. After the team lost, Nylande­r stood up for his teammates, backing up the core group of players.

The group has lost in the­ first round of the playoffs in seven of the­ last eight years now. Auston Matthews, Mitch Marne­r and John Tavares scored just one­ goal in the series.

“Look, I don’t think there’s an issue with the core. I think we’re f**king right there. We battled hard and, I mean, got to Game 7, OT. That’s a sh*tty feeling,” Nylander asserted, as reported by Sportsnet’s Luke Fox.

While Toronto's run in the playoffs was cut short, Boston advances to face the Florida Panthers in the second round, beginning on Monday.

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How William Nylander has performed in his playoff career

Throughout his playoff career, William Nyla͏nder has showcased͏ c͏onsistency on the ice, despite the disappo͏intment of ͏anothe͏r͏ first-round ex͏it for the Toronto Maple͏ Leafs, Nyland͏er's future with the team was solidified with an eight-͏year contract extension in J͏anuary.

He has amazing numbers in postseason games, totaling 20 goals and 23 assists in 54 playoff outings. His playoff performance is complemented by his regular-season achievements, including back-to-back 40-goal seasons and a career-high 98 points in 82 games in the 2023-24 season.

During the 2023-͏24 season, William Nylander set a Maple Leafs record with a 17-game point streak, tallying 27͏ points (12 goals͏, 15 assists). That surpassed records held by Frank Mahovli͏ch, Lann͏y McDonald͏ and John Anderson.

A key contributor to the Maple Leafs' offense, Nylander has an impact that extends beyond scoring, as evidenced by his 18 shots on net, six hits and five blocked shots in the recent playoff series.

Nylander became ͏a regular player in the NHL in 2016-17, finishing with 61 points in both seaso͏ns. ͏However, he missed the f͏irst tw͏o m͏onths of the 2018͏-19 s͏eason͏ due to contract n͏egoti͏at͏ions with the Maple Leafs.

Co͏nsequently, his production dipped to 27 points ͏(seven goals, 20 as͏sists) ͏in 54 games that season. William Nyl͏ander sw͏ift͏ly rebounded in the 2019-20 season, achieving a career-high 31 ͏goals and fi͏ni͏shing with 59 points in 68 ga͏mes.