Toronto Maple Leafs forward William Nylander will likely be playing centre to begin the regular season and it’s been one of the most fascinating developments to track at training camp. Nylander started camp centring a line with Max Domi and Calle Jarnkrok, as the Maple Leafs look to increase his ice time and responsibility under Craig Berube.
The 28-year-old spoke to The Athletic’s Jonas Siegel for an exclusive interview, where he spoke extensively about his thoughts on playing centre and some differences between Berube and Sheldon Keefe, among other topics.
“Well, I know, I think it puts me in a good position too,” Nylander said of playing centre. “I can get the puck more in the middle of the ice with a little bit more options coming from the middle. You can go either way – kick it that way, kick it that way. Versus if you’re on the wing, offensively, you have one option, kind of, on that side. If you’re stuck on one side. But defensively yeah, there’s a lot of different responsibilities as a centre. For me, it’s also important that I know I have somebody that I can play with that can help me defensively.
Berube called Nylander twice over the summer to let him know he’d play centre and he was willing to accept whatever role his new coach had in store for him. Nylander also stated he played his first 22 games in the NHL at centre, before being moved to the wing. And it appears that Berube has left no room for ambiguity, which may be a departure from Keefe’s coaching style.
“Yeah, I mean, there’s been no talk about doing anything else from Craig,” Nylander said. “But I don’t know with Sheldon. Maybe he saw something in the way the lineup (looked) and he didn’t want me playing centre. I don’t know what his thoughts were, you know? It might not have to be with me even playing centre, myself.”
There’s always been a natural fascination about how players can operate at centre and wing interchangably and Nylander expanded on what he anticipates some of the challenges may be.
“A little bit physically, too. Because you’re in the corners and you’re trying to stop plays defensively to get the puck to your forwards. Versus I’ve been the guy at forward that’s waiting for the puck to come to me. So that’s a little bit different. Getting back – the centre is very important to get back and help the D. As a winger, you can just hope for a breakaway,” Nylander said.
It’s a fascinating interview with Siegel and we implore you to get a read on what one of the Maple Leafs’ best players thinks of this new transition. It appears to be a pathway to greater ice time and further responsibility for Nylander, who is coming off the best season of his career, where he recorded 40 goals and 98 points in 82 games, while earning his first All-Star appearance.
