How does William Nylander compare offensively to others stars from 2014 NHL Draft?

It only took 672 games for Toronto Maple Leafs forward William Nylander to reach 600 career points. With his first assist against the New York Rangers on March 20, he became the fifth fastest player in franchise history to reach this plateau.

Nylander is also ranks fifth in the 2014 NHL Draft with 605 points. When the Maple Leafs selected him eighth overall in the draft, everyone could have projected this is how Nylander’s career would pan out so far in the NHL, but few players actually turn into the player everyone expects on draft night, especially for the first 10 picks each year.

And sure, there were some growing pains along the way when Nylander first broke into the league during the 2015-16 season, but even then, he showed signs of becoming something special in the NHL. With three in a row 40-goal season’s, Nylander has become a superstar in the NHL, but how does he compare to other players from his draft class?

Looking back on the 2014 NHL draft, it has some great players. But for the purpose of this assignment, I can’t compare Nylander to the standout goaltenders from this class, Igor Shesterkin and Thatcher Demko.

So instead, here are Nylander’s career stats versus a couple players from the 2014 class, and a determination of who I would rather have today. We’re not going to compare Nylander against players who obviously didn’t pan out, such as Michael Dal Colle, Jake Virtanen and Haydn Fleury, who went fifth, sixth and seventh overall, respectively.

Willam Nylander (drafted eighth overall) vs. Sam Reinhart (drafted second overall)

Nylander has recorded a better points per game (PPG) mark across his career, but ever since Reinhart was traded to the Florida Panthers in the 2021 offseason, he’s basically put up the same numbers as Nylander. The NHL is what have you done for me lately type of league and for Reinhart, he’s coming off a 57-goal campaign last year in the regular season before adding 10 more goals in the playoffs en route to a Stanley Cup.

Nylander is coming off a statical better season, putting up a career high 98 points. He didn’t get a chance to play a full first round where he entered the series in Game 3 against the Boston Bruins last year, due to migraines.  In those four games, he had three goals, and you wonder what could’ve happened if he was healthy all series.

Both are great players in the game today and play close to the same style of game, not super physical and are relied on for their elite goal scoring ability, but you can only pick one.

Who I would take: Slight edge to Nylander

William Nylander vs. Leon Draisaitl (drafted third overall)

Back when Nylander and Draisaitl broke into the league they both had similar starts to their careers.

They both struggled as rookies, with Draisaitl putting up only nine points in 37 games, while  Nylander recorded 13 points in 22 games, but they also showed signs of who they became today. Draisaitl has been on another level since the 2018-19 season where he became one of the top five players in the world, going from 25 goals in 2017-18 to 50 in the following season on his way to the first 100-point season of his career. Now he’s about to hit 50 goals for the fourth time in his career while also reaching six 100-point seasons and possibly adding a second Hart Trophy to his collection. So when comparing him to Nylander, who might be a top-20 player in the NHL keep in mind, they’re not in the same conversation because of the production that we’ve seen from Draisaitl over all these year, to say nothing of the playoff success he’s had, winning multiple rounds in different years where he continues to shine in the biggest moments.

Who I would take: Draisaitl

William Nylander vs. Sam Bennett (drafted fourth overall)

Sam Bennett was off to a slow start to his career, with some labeling him a bust until he was traded from the Calgary Flames, to the Panthers as well. The overall production isn’t there in terms of what you’d expect and hope for from a fourth overall pick in a draft. But while Bennett hasn’t been the ‘points’ player he has been a player nobody in the league wants to play against, especially in the playoffs, because his level of physically, something that Nylander has never brought to the table.

Bennett’s last two playoff runs with Florida Panthers are underrated: in 2022-23, the Panthers made the Cup Final, where Bennett had five goals and 15 points in 20 games, along with a whopping 84 hits. He followed it up with another great run in 2023-24 with seven goals and 14 points in 19 games to go along with 87 hits. The most hits Nylander has had in a full season is 32.

At the end of the day though when comparing the two players, for me at least, I want the guy that’s been a superstar for a long time and can score a goal in the biggest moments.

Who I would take: Nylander

William Nylander vs. Dylan Larkin (drafted 15^th overall)

Larkin is what a lot general managers want when building a team down the middle of the ice: he boasts good size, skill and he’s widely considered an amazing leader. In his career he’s always been steady, producing 50-70 seasons for the most case so far in his career and is an underrated goal scorer in my opinion, but he’s been a step behind players like Nylander his whole career, who have the ability to take over a game. All the success Larkin has had as a player in the NHL has been in the regular season, as the Detroit Red Wings have only made the playoffs once in his tenure, where they were bounced in five games during the 2015-16 campaign, and Larkin had only one point.

Who I would take: Nylander

William Nylander vs. David Pastrnak (drafted 25^th overall)

These two have known each other since they were teenagers playing as teammates in Europe and both have been great everywhere they’ve been. They are the most comparable on this list as well since they have played on the wing for their entire careers. But it seems that Pastrnak as always been big brother to Nylander in terms of their NHL success, whether it be in the playoffs or regular season.

Pastrnak’s best season was in 2022-23 when he had 61 goals and 52 assists for 113 points, totals Nylander just hasn’t reached yet. Pastrnak has also been a 30-goal scorer eight times in his career, compared to Nylander’s five. The real difference is the playoffs. In 90 career playoff games, Pastrnak has 39 goals and 87 points while Nylander has 20 goals and 43 points in 54 games. Unfortunately, we also can’t forget about the series wins the Bruins have had over the Maple Leafs and the fact he’s been to the Cup Final, just coming up short in Game 7 in 2019.

Who I would take: Pastrnak

William Nylander vs. Brayden Point (drafted 79^th overall)

Point is probably the steal of the draft, falling all the way to 79^th overall and he’s often left out of discussions surrounding the NHL’s elite goal scorers, but Nylander is right there with him in terms of that. But, just like Pastrnak, it’s the playoffs where the real difference is between these two players. Brayden Point has been three cup finals, winning two of the them and arguably should have a Conn Smythe to his name for his performance during the 2019-20 playoffs where he had 14 goals, 33 points in 23 games for the Tampa Bay Lightning. In 87 career playoff games Point has 42 goals and 87 points. His game rises the bigger the moment for him and while Nylander does the same thing, it’s not to the same extent.

Who I would take: Slight edge to Point