Observations:

January 2016 – After leading the AHL in scoring heading into the World Junior Hockey Championships, Nylander only last part of a game as we all know and suffered head trauma leading to a lasting concussion that has kept him from reporting back to Toronto for analysis. There is no rush to get him back into a lineup, but more so to understand where he is at currently with his concussion. Currently we have no fears of a career effect, but as a smallish player, you have to question how many times he can with stand similar collisions. Nylander has also been selected to the AHL All-Star game, of course if able to participate. Jason Banks

November 2015 – As was expected, Nylander is threatening the AHL scoring lead amongst seasoned competition. Nylander’s goals have been more of the opportunistic than his strength of creativity. He has struggled in the faceoff circle, but has shown much growth in getting involved defensively in the past not only using his slick, stick skillz, but also body positioning. He is currently on pace of smashing through last year’s numbers by the time he reaches the same 37 game plateau in mid-January. His NHL debut is extremely close, likely when the team is done with the Byron Froese experiment they will mix and match more notable prospects to the opportunity. Jason Banks

September 2015 – After a strong ending to his rookie AHL season, Nylander is poised to threaten the leaderboard of scoring in minor pro. No matter how well Nylander shows in camp, it is expected that he will build on his 32 points in 37 games, AHL statistics from last year as a winger. The Leafs have announced this season will feature him as a Center hoping he can drive plays with the skilled, natural wingers the organization now has in the cupboard. The wait may be a bit painful for owners, but at only 19 years of age, Nylander is destined to become a higher end producer going forward. Jason Banks

February 2015 – Nylander is getting his feet wet in North America after showing that the Swedish league was a little too easy and a productive World Junior Tournament. He is just seven games into his AHL career and has already scored a pair of goals and a pair of assists. In viewing him in both the Under-20s and now on the Marlies, he has huge untapped potential, but needs to show drive. Currently he seems to only put out an effort when the puck in in his vicinity or could be sprung, this saves his energy for offensive opportunities but limits how many he can get. His hands and vision are magical and he is very good at creating space for himself, but defenders seem willing to respect his speed and talents while limiting his opportunities by positioning themselves strongly and not allowing him to dangerous avenues towards the net. I have yet to see anyone take a run at him, and he seems to have pretty good survivability with his head up, and he is a rather slippery customer along the boards. Overall the tool bag he has is very deep, but maturity, experience and overall drive is much needed for this 18 year old. Management stated that they will not recall him to the NHL this season, which is the best path for his development, but I’m not holding my breath on that promise as there is an expected sell off nearing the deadline. Jason Banks

August 2014 – William Nylander, Toronto's 1st round pick in 2014, has signed a three-year entry-level contract with the club. Nylander's destination is still up in the air but the skilled Swede has several options including the AHL's Toronto Marlies, heading back to Sweden to play in the SHL or a longer-shot is playing with the Mississauga Steelheads of the OHL, who drafted him in the 2014 CHL Import Draft. Brendan Ross

June 2014 – The Toronto Maple Leafs selected William Nylander 8^th overall in the 2014 NHL Entry Draft. Brendan Ross

May 2014 – At the 2014 Under-18 World Championships, Swede William Nylander led all competitors in scoring with 16 points in just seven games. Consequently, Nylander was named Best Forward and was best in plus/minus (plus-8), assists (10) and points (16). Brendan Ross

February 2014 – William Nylander is perhaps the most skilled dynamic forward available. The knock against Nylander is that he hasn’t shown the willingness to utilize his teammates leaving scouts to question his dedication to the team game. Without a doubt, Nylander possesses the puck skills and timely offensive instincts to become a game-breaker but it’s still fairly uncertain how high teams are willing to gamble on such a talent. Brendan Ross

July 2013 – The son of former NHLer Michael Nylander, William has travelled the globe honing his impressive hockey skills. The young Swede has travelled from Calgary to Chicago to Södertälje and along the way, he has developed into an extremely promising prospect. Nylander is a player who excels in puck possession as he displays elite level puck handling ability and owns an element of elusiveness, both through crafty puck skills and good agility. He can create offense through a multitude of ways including impressive one-on-one dekes and aggressive skating that forces defenders to act quickly. Nylander enters his draft year as the number one European prospect and will battle for the first overall selection. Brendan Ross

Fantasy Outlook: A+

Nylander is working his way through the pro ranks like a hot knife through butter. His NHL debut is sure to take place sooner than later, when he becomes a productive weapon is the major question.

Footage:

William Nylander Highlights.

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