Nylander leads the Leafs with five goals, but power play struggles and a lack of chemistry are hindering the forward from his full potential.
If the Toronto Maple Leafs are to achieve the success they desire this season, much of it will hinge on William Nylander’s performance.
The star forward’s season began strongly, tallying five goals and two assists in the first six games, but he’s gone scoreless during the team’s current three-game winless streak.
And there've been mistakes.
"Early on, he was creating a lot of opportunities, and he's scored a couple goals. But, the power play is not scoring," Maple Leafs head coach Craig Berube said during his media availability on Sunday before the team flew to Winnipeg. "I think a little bit of frustration has set in with him as of right now. Not getting enough clean looks."
Recently, Nylander has played on a line with Max Domi and Bobby McMann, which proved to be Toronto's lowest-performing line at even strength in their 4-3 overtime loss to the Boston Bruins on Saturday.
The line was on the ice for Toronto's second goal allowed when Bobby McMann couldn’t control the puck along the sideboards in his own zone, leading to a goal by Justin Brazeau that put Boston up 2-1 in the second period.
Nylander also uncharacteristically lost his balance in the offensive zone, which led to Boston’s third goal by Mark Kastelic.
These mistakes weren’t isolated to this game. Nylander and Berube have often been seen in extended conversations before and after practice, working to address issues and build strategies.
The two also caught up at the team hotel before heading to face the Jets on Monday.
"Just trying to help him out and show him things he can do better," Berube said about working with Nylander through his frustration. "I think there's not much chemistry with his line right now."
After McMann’s error, Berube only played him for two more shifts, rotating other combinations, including Steven Lorentz with Domi and Nylander, while moving John Tavares back to the center role alongside the pair.
Nylander wasn’t available to reporters following the game, but scoring again would likely help him find his rhythm. Until then, Berube is focused on preventing old habits from resurfacing.
"Learning a new system and things like that, too, that are going into it. Things creep back in. Old habits creep back in," Berube explained. "We want to just limit, we've got to limit those things. If we do that, we're going to be in good shape."
