Nylander signed a six-year deal with the Toronto Maple Leafs two months into the regular season and proceeded to put up some less-than-pleasing numbers.
Could this stint at the world championships be exactly what he needs?
The 2018-19 season was not nice to 23-year-old. Sure, he signed on for the next half-decade at $6.9 million per, but his underwhelming 27 points and the criticism (and trolling) thrown his way don’t exactly scream “Welcome home, Willy!”
They don’t, however, scream “We don’t need you!”
We do need him, and we want him.