After battling a lower-body injury that kept him out of action for six straight NHL games, William Nylander was back on the ice.
"He brings offensive power and adds a lot in many areas. It's great to have him back," Toronto coach Craig Berube said ahead of Sunday's game against Vancouver.
The 29-year-old immediately showed how much of an addition he can be. A well-placed pass from close to the net to Matias Maccelli, which made it 1-0 after eight minutes, was just the beginning of Nylander's evening.
Twelve minutes later he scored to make it 3–0, his 15th goal of the season.
It would be another point in the game for Nylander. In the second period, he broke up Zeev Buium's pass and then sent the puck directly to John Tavares. The veteran went in alone on Vancouver's new substitute, Kevin Lankinen, and had no trouble making it 4–0.
"It was a great job by Nylander reading the game, his timing, his awareness of all those things. That's why he's an elite player," Tavares said, according to nhl.com .
Nylander, who is part of the Swedish Olympic squad, has accounted for 44 points so far this season – the most in Toronto and the third-most among Swedish players in the league, after Lucas Raymond (Detroit) and Leo Carlsson (Anaheim).
"It's not fun to be on the sidelines and just watch, but the team has played fantastically, so it was fun to see them play well," Nylander said about his absence.
