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Everything William Nylander Thread

“Overall, I would say that Nylander should be selected top five in the draft. His NHL upside is probably a PPG player, but he likely will never be a great two-way player. His skating, hands and reading of the game at lightspeed makes him a good fit in the modern NHL. He is going to receive a lot of love and hate, but he always will be entertaining.” - Future Considerations' 2014 NHL Draft Guide

"[Nylander] does possess Patrick Kane like skill in his ability to control and dangle with the puck needing minimal space to unleash a quick and accurate wrist shot." McKeen's 2014 NHL Draft Guide

I'm just posting whatever I can find. Sorry if I post something twice.
 
I know people who played with him when his dad was in the NHL.. he was really young at the time, but apparently he was very full of himself and a real prick. No one liked him. Good pick overall though. Happy to hear he'll probably be a Leaf or Marlie.
 
According to TSN:

Projection - elite offensive wing

Player comparable - Patrick Kane

Best asset - Offensive flair
 
Joffrey Lupul ‏@JLupul 1m
Our new draft picks handle is @snizzbone and his bio is "give me the puck". I like him already. Congrats my man. Excited to have you
 
Preston_Mizzi said:
I know people who played with him when his dad was in the NHL.. he was really young at the time, but apparently he was very full of himself and a real prick. No one liked him. Good pick overall though. Happy to hear he'll probably be a Leaf or Marlie.
Click to expand...

Yeeaaaahhh....if you can back it up, I have no issue with cockiness.
 
[video=youtube;JiPD0fWSRU8]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JiPD0fWSRU8[/video]

Not sure of the quality of this video. Can't watch it at work.
 
https://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/nhl-...-as-he-prepares-for-nhl-future-193548799.html

William Nylander Altelius (2014), C

Committed to Modo next season in the SHL, Nylander spent time with four different teams this year including a brief audition with Modo J20 team, multiple stints in the Allsvenskan and a call-up to the SHL .. a dominant force in international play leading the 2014 World U18 Championships in points (7-6-10-16) and finished tied for second in tournament points at the 2013 World U17 Challenge capturing a gold medal (6-2-8-10) .. talented solo act who can gain the zone and brings energy and intensity to each shift .. innovative, ideas occur naturally as a by-product of his vision and awareness .. always looking for the perfect play which can cripple his game appearing to hold onto the puck too long or trying to do too much .. creates separation via an explosive short cross-over stride and superb lateral agility .. Nylander’s omission from Team Sweden entry into the WJC humbled him as he bore down in the second half playing a more mature game .. can play harder in defensive situations but he does possess Patrick Kane like skill in his ability to control and dangle with the puck needing minimal space to unleash a quick and accurate wrist shot.
 
Pro-Agility Test Left - Nylander 2nd
Pro-Agility Test Right - Nylander 2nd
Wingate Test - Average Power Output (watts/kg) - Nylander 1st
Wingate Test - Peak Power Output (watts/kg) - Nylander 1st
Hand-Eye Coordination test - Nylander 4th
 
Goran Stubb, NHL Director of European Scouting, at NHL.com:

“William is an exceptional talent with all the tools needed to become a star. He’s an artist on the ice. William is an excellent offensive player with an extremely high skill level. He’s not a selfish player, but does tend to hold on to the puck too long at times. He needs to improve his defensive game, but he’s a fun player to watch and a real crowd-pleaser.”


Eldon MacDonald, THW:

A few words on William Nylander:

All the skills - Many say, William is the most skilled player in the draft. Dynamic, quick, agile, great hands, great passes, always changing the pace of play, can accelerate out of the blocks.

Wizard level creativity - William has the vision and creativity to augment his physical skills to make himself an offensive wizard at times.

Genes – Son of 14 year NHL veteran, Michael Nylander, William even had a chance to play with his Dad on occasion over the last two seasons.

Issues – William is a light weight, undersized forward who will always have strength issues. His defensive play also has a long ways to go. He has been bounced around a lot this season and has only found consistent success so far when he was paired with David Pastrňák at Södertälje of the Allsvenskan league. Most recently he has, however, been playing up in MODO in the top Swedish league and has, at times, been the best player on the ice.

Draft placement – William will need to improve his consistently to move up from around 10 on most lists. Failure to do so will likely cause a further drop in his rankings.
 
Pronman:

The son of longtime NHLer Michael Nylander may be the most gifted pure offensive talent in the draft. William had a so-so first half when he struggled to find a role, but had a tremendous second half. Because of that turnaround, I've heard NHL scouts rank him anywhere from No. 2 overall to the 20s. He was over a point per game pace with Sodertalje in the SHL-2, setting a season record for points by an under-18 player, and played around 20 minutes per game with Modo down the stretch. Nylander's pucks skills are elite, as he can be described as "an artist" by some scouts in terms of how well he controls the puck, and the unique plays he makes. Nylander's hockey sense is fantastic as well, in terms of his vision, and offensive intellect. You combine that with a pretty good top gear and Nylander can create all sorts of havoc offensively. Nylander can deke a defender out, make a highlight-reel pass, speed by players. He's not the biggest guy (5-11, 181 pounds), his defensive play needs work, and he can try to do too much sometimes.
 
“He is the most talented player in the draft,” Nonis said of Nylander. “I don’t think it’s a risky pick. An issue for him is size (five-foot-nine, 170 pounds), but he’s grown a lot. In terms of foot speed, puck skills, he’s got all that. For him, it’s going to be about hard work, getting stronger.”

“He thinks he’s good enough to play a significant role on a men’s pro team,” said Nonis. “Some people have a problem with that. To me, I have no issue if he can back it up with his play.”

“Against Canada when things were difficult, when they ran him a little bit, one of the things we looked for was: Would he shrink?” said Nonis. “That wasn’t a factor at all. He played as hard against the U.S. and Canada as anyone else. He was trying to prove a point, that he’s not a kid who’s going to be intimidated.”

http://www.thestar.com/sports/leafs...peed_nhl_hands_and_an_nhl_shot_right_now.html

*Note: Nylander was measured at 5'11" at the combine, not 5'9"
 
Asked to explain Nylander’s game in a word, Nonis came up with “electrifying,” which isn’t half bad given some of the alternatives.

“He has NHL speed, NHL hands, an NHL shot right now,” Nonis said. “It’s whether or not the rest of his game can catch up… It may take him a month to acclimate, it may take him over a year – I don’t know that. But the skillset is very high end. I’m sure you guys [in the media] have seen some of the clips of him and those highlights happen regularly.

“He’ll be a very exciting player for our fans.”

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/spor...der-a-smart-bet-by-the-leafs/article19384057/
 
nylander625jun27_v2.jpg
 
Very critical write-up from Scott Burnside of ESPN:

8. Toronto Maple Leafs - C William Nylander

Exceptionally skilled - the most dynamic offensive talent in the draft. But son of longtime NHLer Michael Nylander has been coddled for years. Sometimes selfish, always a diva, and will give coaches gray hair. Has phenomenal hands and a world of skill; handles the puck as though it were glued to his blade, making ridiculous moves at top speed without a bobble. Glides effortlessly and is exceptionally elusive in tight quarters. While he's a brilliant stickhandler, always looks for the flashiest "Wow!" play instead of the simple, correct one. Superb on the PP where he owns the puck and sets up every play. Seemingly has more time to process the game than anyone else. Can slow play down, control the pace, then explode. Tremendous finishing ability. Terrific playmaker with every pass in the book, plus a few extras. Often seems intent only on showing everyone how skilled he is.
 
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