Toronto Maple Leafs forward William Nylander feels that his team’s 6-3 win over the Pittsburgh Penguins was just what the doctor ordered.
With the fan base on edge and people’s jobs hanging in the balance, the Leafs played with a chip on their shoulders and were able to get the bounces in their favour. Nylander led the way with four points on the afternoon, including his first two goals of December after going 11 games without a tally.
He told reporters after the game that it’s a performance they can build off of when the holiday break concludes on Saturday.
“I think it was a nice way to head into the break,” he said. “The past couple of games, I think we have done a better job generating chances, but haven’t been able to score. So it’s nice that that happened tonight.”
There was an air of heaviness going into the game as the team was a day removed from having fired Marc Savard, the man in charge of the Leafs’ power-play that was ranked dead-last at the time of his dismissal. While they were once again unable to find the back of the net in this one, they did get plenty of good looks during a crucial stretch of the contest that the Leafs were ultimately able to prevail.
“Obviously, he was a great guy and sad to see him go,” Nylander said of Savard. “But I mean, we’ve been struggling. So I guess that’s the first step to make a change that will work for the team.”
Nylander had been fighting through it over the past few weeks, so much so that even he was at a loss for words about the Leafs’ struggles. It would have been easy for him to let the frustration of the setbacks seep into his game, but he played with authority off the hop and was able to get plenty of quality looks that had been difficult to come by before this contest.
There is still lots of work for Nylander and the Leafs to do if they wish to make it 10 straight playoff appearances, but having the good vibes going into Christmas is never a bad thing.
“Taking pucks to the net more than anything,” head coach Craig Berube said on what stood out about Nylander’s play. “Getting open, driving to the net. That line makes a lot of plays, which is good to see.”
Nylander will look to build off his dominant showing on Saturday when the Leafs take on the Ottawa Senators, with puck drop set for 7 p.m. EST.
PRESENTED BY OFF THE ROSTER
