In a season where the Toronto Maple Leafs have dealt with blow after blow, while underperforming, the team will face another piece of adversity following their 7-5 win over their rival Ottawa Senators on Saturday night.
During a puck battle in the second period at the side of the Senators’ net, it seemed as though Maple Leafs’ forward William Nylander suffered an apparent lower-body injury that ended his night early for the struggling Maple Leafs. It was announced by the team that Nylander wouldn’t return to the game due to the injury, while post-game comments by Craig Berube indicated that he could be out short-term, but that he wasn’t too concerned with the severity of the injury.
“He’s coming on the trip, so that’s a good sign,” said Berube during his post-game press conference. “We’ll see how he is tomorrow.”
Nylander did play just under nine minutes in the game prior to the injury, scoring his 14th goal of the season on the first Steve Sullivan run powerplay for the Maple Leafs to give them a 1-0 lead just 40 seconds into the game.
His team was able to close out a much-needed win even with his absence in the lineup, and while the team will prepare for an evening tilt on Sunday against the Detroit Red Wings, Nylander’s status remains up in the air.
As for what he’s done for the team so far this season, the 29-year-old has 14 goals and 41 points in 33 games while the team has struggled as a whole. No definitive timeline was given for Nylander’s injury, however, he should return to the lineup soon.
