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William Nylander clears the air with Maple Leafs teammate after scary injury

Originally posted on NHL on ClutchPoints
By Tristin McKinstry | Last updated Sep 28, 2024 1:09 AM ET

The Toronto Maple Leafs saw William Nylander exit their preseason game on Thursday night after a scary injury. Toronto forward Nick Robertson attempted to give Nylander a boost with his stick through the neutral zone. However, Nylander fell to the ice. His head then collided with an opponent’s knee. Nylander was held out of the rest of the contest as a precaution.

A day later, things are fine between Nylander and Robertson. Nylander mentioned to the media on Friday that he and Robertson spoke on the phone following the game. “He called me after the game and I said all good,” Nylander said, via Sportsnet. “He scored, so it’s all good.”

Robertson indeed scored against the Montreal Canadiens on Thursday. In fact, his second-period marker stood as the game-winning goal. The Maple Leafs defeated the Canadiens 2-1 on Thursday to pick up their first preseason victory of the year.

Maple Leafs’ Nick Robertson gives account of William Nylander injury

Toronto Maple Leafs forward William Nylander (88) battles for the puck with Montreak Canadiens defenseman David Reinbacher (64) in the first period at Scotiabank Arena. Dan Hamilton-Imagn Images

Nick Robertson spoke with the media after the game on Thursday. He wasted no time in addressing the situation with William Nylander. Robertson acknowledged that he tried to give his teammate a boost when he pushed him with his stick.

“Obviously, elephant in the room, with the Willy situation. It’s unfortunate, I was trying to give him a bit of a boost there,” Robertson said, via Sportsnet, after the win over Montreal. “It is what it is. … He’s doing good and we’ll see how he is in the next few days.”

Nylander did say the push from Robertson caught him a bit by surprise. However, he believed his teammate did everything the right well. And he pointed to some other factors that may have led to the unfortunate accident during the contest.

“He did it properly. Also, the ice is a little bit soft at the beginning of the year, so I think that also contributed to me digging forward into the ice a little bit, so led to a toe pick but whatever,” Nylander said, via Sportsnet. “It is what it is.”

Nylander has emerged as a star for the Maple Leafs over the last few seasons. In fact, he signed an eight-year contract extension with Toronto during the 2023-24 NHL season. Robertson, meanwhile, recently signed a one-year contract in the midst of trade rumors.

Robertson and Nylander could certainly play together in the regular season. It seems as if this incident won’t have any effect once the games mean something in a few weeks. The Maple Leafs begin their 2024-25 NHL season against the Canadiens on October 9.

This article first appeared on NHL on ClutchPoints and was syndicated with permission.

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