Nylander in 11th season with Maple Leafs, ‘thankful to play’ for Toronto

TORONTO -- William Nylander is draped in a chef’s apron, carefully dousing gravy on plates of turkey with the same precision as he uses to niftily stick-handle around defensemen.

Spilling, after all, is not an option here for the Toronto Maple Leafs forward.

This is how Nylander started his Canadian Thanksgiving weekend: by taking time with teammates Simon Benoit and Max Domi to serve meals to homeless and needy youths at his team’s annual visit to Covenant House in downtown Toronto on Thursday. It’s yet another example of how he’s embraced living and playing in the hockey-crazed fishbowl that is this city, a place where the omnipresent spotlight can often be overwhelming for some players.

Not for the guy known as “Willy Styles,” however, someone who strives to be part of the community rather than shy away from it.

“I’m thankful to play here, to live here. I’ve done it my whole career. It’s all I’ve ever known,” Nylander, now in his 11th season with Toronto, told NHL.com.

“Giving back and helping people that need help, I think that’s very special. I’ve always been like that. I mean, I’m thankful for what I have and, you know, share a little bit.”

What better message to send to the local fans on a long holiday weekend, one which culminates with Nylander’s Maple Leafs hosting the Detroit Red Wings at Scotiabank Arena on Thanksgiving Monday in the first of Amazon Prime’s 26 “Monday Night Hockey” broadcasts in Canada (2 p.m. ET; Prime, FDSNDET).

Puck drop was moved up by two hours in order to avoid a conflict with the Toronto Blue Jays, who host the Seattle Mariners in Game 2 of the American League Championship Series at 5:08 p.m. ET. With Scotiabank Arena just four blocks away from Rogers Centre, home of the Blue Jays, the area will be a sport’s fan’s utopia.

“The city sure is buzzing, isn’t it?” Nylander acknowledged, breaking into a wry grin.

His adopted city. Just the way he likes it too.

Nylander was born in Calgary while his father, longtime NHL forward Michael Nylander, was playing for the Flames. The family now lives in Stockholm, where William spends his offseasons.

In the process, among the things Nylander enjoys “sharing,” to use his own word, is an inside look at his life both at and away from the rink, here and overseas.

As such, while some of his teammates might prefer to avoid the public eye in Toronto, he has no issues putting himself right in the middle of it. Whether it's walking his dog through the downtown streets or occasionally taking the subway to home games, he’s comfortable with it all.

To that end, he agreed for a second consecutive season to be one of the subjects for Prime Video’s “FACEOFF: Inside The NHL.” From furniture shopping, to dining with dad Michael and brother Alex, to being labelled “soft” by the Florida Panthers during the Stanley Cup Playoffs last spring, the 29-year-old displays his unflappable personality throughout.

“I thought they did a pretty good job with it,” Nylander said of the project, which features he and former Maple Leafs president Brendan Shanahan in Episode 4.

Let’s not forget, too, Nylander also has started his own YouTube channel (@williamnylander), which already has more than 45,000 subscribers. The inaugural video is fittingly titled, “Willy Styles Summer in Sweden.”

“I just thought it would be a fun thing to do and give fans insight into my life away from the rink. Hopefully [there’s] some fun stuff in there,” he said.

Nylander said being part of the first season of “FACEOFF: Inside The NHL” made him comfortable with being followed around by cameras, leading to the YouTube project which will feature his family and friends as well.

“I think that's what made it kind of easy, and it wasn't going to really change too much,” he said. “I've done it before, so that's why I thought it wouldn't be doing too much.

“When I first did the first stuff, I was a little bit worried about me getting distracted and stuff. Now that I've done that a couple of times, I think it's just going to be the same kind of situation, just doing other stuff.”

Of more immediate concern for Nylander and the Maple Leafs is getting retribution for their 6-3 loss to the Red Wings at Little Caesar’s Arena in Detroit on Saturday, a game in which Toronto led 2-0. Nylander had an assist and has four points (one goal, three assists) in two games this season.

Nylander ranks ninth on the Maple Leafs’ all-time list with 616 points (263 goals, 353 assists) in 687 games. But Toronto has won only two postseason series during his time here, a hurdle he hopes it can overcome and bring the Maple Leafs their first Stanley Cup championship since 1967.

“I just look at it that, eventually, it has to happen,” he told “Hockey Night in Canada” in a feature that ran Saturday. “Hopefully it happens while I’m in Toronto and still playing.

“But eventually it’ll happen. That’s the way I look at it.”

That would be something long-suffering fans in this city would really be thankful for.