Analyst rips fans for their treatment of William Nylander and they demand of him
There are a lot of polarizing players in hockey, but most of the obvious ones either have significant off-ice problems or are routinely responsible for preventable injuries on the ice with reckless play and head-hunting. Possibly the most polarizing player in the NHL that does not have any off-ice issues and who is not out there delivering high, blindside hits, slewfoots or knee-on-knee collisions is William Nylander, who takes heat for decided when to hit the gas pedal instead of just playing hard each and every shift.
Sure, Nylander's lazy back-checks and refusal to take a hit to make a play can be frustrating at times, but his offensive impacts cannot be ignored and will often negate any of his defensive miscues or his unwillingness to get in hard on the forecheck.
Following Nylander's costly tripping penalty that ended up costing Sweden a trip to the semi-finals at the World Championships on Thursday, TSN's Craig Button came to his defense, stating that a lot of the heat that Nylander takes is very unfair for a point-per game player in the best league in the world, finishing the 2021-22 season with 80 points in 81 games for the Leafs.
"I think the criticism of William Nylander is unfair, I really do.. Willy Nylander was a point-a-game player this year. If that's not star quality, I don't know what is."
Nylander is never going to be that total package player that does it all. Button went on to say that he thinks that Nylander, for what he is, is exceptional. He also added that if the Leafs aren't happy with what they're getting from Nylander, he has a very movable contract that another GM would be glad to take off of Kyle Dubas' hands.
"One thing I learned a long time ago, players are what they are and you got to accept them. And if you don't want them, then move them along. William Nylander is one of the easiest players to move on the planet because of his contract and because of how good of a player he is. If you don't want him, move him along. I said the same thing about [Johnny] Gaudreau, the same thing with Mark Scheifele. If you don't like them, that's fine.. if you don't like what they do, or you want a different type of player, that's fine too. But at the end of it all, William Nylander is a really talented player. Not very many point-a-game players in the NHL, and if you want to move him along, go ahead.. I'm just amazed at how much criticism he gets that I feel is unfair and unwarranted."
Nylander arrived at the World Championships with a bit of a chip on his shoulder after being bounced by the Lightning in round one, failing to close out the series in two attempts with home ice advantage. He was much more physical than we're used to seeing, which has led to a lot of Leafs fans being frustrated with the 26-year-old for not bringing that element to his game in the series against Tampa. Button touched on the fact that it's people's expectations of Nylander that are to blame for their frustration and not the player himself, who has always been exactly what he is. A skilled forward with a greater offensive impact than a defensive one.
"You're not gonna see it. He's not that type of player.. I'm not saying he doesn't show it [at times]. William Nylander isn't harnessing his inner Owen Nolan. He's not a power forward... If you want it, you're just gonna keep believing that he doesn't give you anything. Some players are what they are. If you want a power forward in William Nylander, you're going to be forever disappointed. That's on everybody else, that's not on William Nylander."
Button, for all of his misses, really seemed to hit the mark on this one. Do you agree with Button here? Do his comments make you take a step back and look at Nylander through a bit of a different lens?
| POLL | ||
MAI 26 | 318 ANSWERS Analyst rips fans for their treatment of William Nylander and they demand of him Does William Nylander deserve the criticism he gets? | ||
| No, William Nylander is an excellent player | 64 | 20.1 % |
| Yes, he needs to play hard every shift | 89 | 28 % |
| Honestly, he's equally exciting and frustrating | 116 | 36.5 % |
| Expectations are always high with talent like that | 49 | 15.4 % |
| List of polls | ||
