William Nylander has made it clear he only wants to play for the Toronto Maple Leafs.
In a video he posted to his YouTube channel on Monday, the Maple Leafs forward talked about his off-season and expressed his desire to remain in Toronto.
“I don’t want to go anywhere. I love Toronto. This has been home for me for so long and nothing would make me happier than to win here,” said Nylander, who has six years remaining on his contract, which includes a no-trade clause. “So, I hope that one day that dream comes true.”
The Leafs failed to reach the playoffs for the first time since 2016 this season, leading to the firings of general manager Brad Treliving and head coach Craig Berube. John Chayka was brought in as the new GM alongside the return of franchise icon Mats Sundin as the team’s senior executive advisor of hockey operations.
Nylander said he was excited by the prospect of getting to work more closely with fellow Swede Sundin.
“Mats coming in is, he knows what it’s about playing in Toronto and being such a leader for this team and being such an amazing captain here. So, he’ll bring that to the table and help our club a lot,” Nylander said. “Every time I see him, we talk. So I’m excited to talk to him in this aspect where he’s a big part of our organization and our process to getting to where we want to be.”
Nylander, who recorded a team-best 79 points this past season, said he was looking forward to diving into his off-season training program.
“I think that for me I think it will be a really good thing to be able to get a longer summer for more complete training to be ready for the next season,” he said.
“I’ve been watching the playoffs and it just makes you want to get back out there and play. One week after the season I was like, ‘This is terrible. I want to be out there playing.’ Not that I ever thought it was good to not be in the playoffs, but just being off and watching everybody keep playing was just a terrible feeling.”
Near the end of the video, Nylander was shown attending a Toronto Marlies playoff game with teammate Matthew Knies as the Maple Leafs won the NHL Draft Lottery.
“That’s crazy, that’s insane,” Nylander said, chuckling upon word of the Leafs’ win.
The potential of playing with a winger like Gavin McKenna or Ivan Stenberg — seen as the choice the Leafs face at No. 1 — also has Nylander eager to get back on the ice.
“I’m always fired up for the next season,” he said. “I would say I’m more curious to see what happens this summer with our team. I mean, we’ve got a lot of great people and players here. I know that we’re capable of doing it, so that’s what I’m excited for.”
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