Former NHLer Slams William Nylander Over Character Concerns

William Nylander is and has always been a very polarizing player. In terms of pure skill, he’s among the best in the world, capable of doing things very few others would even try. On the flip side, his effort — particularly on the defensive side of the puck — can, to put it nicely, leave you wanting more.

When Nylander is insulated with a sound team around him, as he has been for most of his career with the Maple Leafs, you can live with the bad. However, with Mitch Marner gone, Auston Matthews’ production slightly down, and John Tavares now 35 years old, Nylander has become the focal point in Toronto. As a result, his flaws and mistakes are under the microscope more than ever before.

The last four games upon returning from the Olympic break have been ugly for the entire team, but Nylander, in particular, has stood out for the wrong reasons on a few occasions. That prompted former NHLer and current analyst Jay Rosehill to rip into the superstar winger, whom he believes has a character problem.

Rosehill said:

“Lack of character, man. It’s been my problem with this core group for a while now. They’re immature, and they don’t have any ability to dig in. You look at that turnover William Nylander had — maybe the game before — just the urgency or desperation or ‘give a ****’ meter to turn it over, and then he slowly hits the brakes, looks back, comes to a complete stop, and kind of watches. That just says all you need to know. Players that have character and leadership do that, and they crank it back so ******* fast and try to rectify their mistake. Willy doesn’t give a ****. Oh, that’s Willy, oh, that’s Willy, oh, that’s just Willy. Well, maybe it shouldn’t be, maybe it’s a massive character flaw in the guy, and it shows up every ******* season,”

The 29-year-old Nylander is in year two of the eight-year, $92 million extension signed with the Maple Leafs in 2024. While it hasn’t been pretty at times, his production remains elite, with 56 points (20 goals, 36 assists) in just 44 games this season.