Nylander is on a three-game goal streak and scored a hat trick on Tuesday against the Flames.
When William Nylander lines up against the Seattle Kraken on Thursday night, the Toronto Maple Leafs forward will be in a different spot.
It won't be in the middle, which the Maple Leafs tried during training camp but didn't stick with. It also won't be on the right wing of either Auston Matthews or John Tavares.
Instead, the 28-year-old will skate on the left side of Tavares, on a line with him and Mitch Marner, who returns to the lineup after missing Toronto's 6-3 win over the Calgary Flames on Tuesday.
The line of Matthew Knies, Auston Matthews, and Max Domi will remain intact entering Thursday's game.
Of course, Nylander has found himself on the left wing during games, but it's been a while since the forward has lined up in that spot for an entire contest.
"You get a different look at everything. I like playing the off-wing a little bit more," Nylander said after the morning skate in Seattle. "We'll see how it goes tonight."
While it's about seeing what a trio of Nylander, Tavares, and Marner can do, it's also about keeping Toronto's first line of Knies, Matthews, and Domi together. The three players combined for five points and a plus-three rating against the Flames.
"I thought they had a real good game," Berube said Thursday. "I liked Max on the line. Felt like he had more juice in the game, so I want to keep him going."
Nylander impacts the game in any position. Whether it's center or on the wing, the forward capitalizes on his opponents by using his speed through the middle of the ice to beat defenders and create scoring chances.
That's why, one day after Berube said Nylander could win the Rocket Richard, he put the forward on the left wing.
"Well, a little bit of a different look for him with his shot, for sure. Also, just in his own end, I think he can be the type of guy that can take pucks off the wall on his forehand, get to middle ice, make some plays, come out of our zone," the head coach said.
"That was the other thing I was thinking about. And just the way it worked out with Mitch playing there with those guys. With JT, I mean, on the right side, I wanted to keep Willy on that line, so I moved him to the left."
Marner mentioned that he and Nylander have played together "a handful of times." The one thing Marner will use to his advantage is the Swede's speed within the open ice.
"We're both right-wingers, but obviously with his skill set and his speed out there, for me, I'm going to try to really utilize that and get him in good spots with the puck in his hands with open ice," Marner said.
"Johnny, you know what you're getting: Consistency. A guy that anytime in the slot that gets a puck, he's got a chance to score. And around the net, he's great at tipping pucks and stuff like that. So, yeah, it'll be fun. I'm excited."
Nylander scored his second-career hat trick on Tuesday in Calgary, eight years to the day since his last three-goal game. He's now up to 33 goals and 22 assists for 55 points in 53 games this season.
The forward is five goals behind Leon Draisaitl for the league lead. If there's anything we've learned about Nylander over his career, it's that he strives when he's thrown into different positions.
We'll likely see the same on Thursday in Seattle when he attempts to draw closer to Draisaitl in the goal category.
