Berube's hands-off approach to Toronto Maple Leafs star Nylander stark contrast from Keefe and Babcock
If you picked Toronto Maple Leafs forward William Nylander in your playoff pool, you might be feeling pretty good about yourself right now.
Through eight playoff games, Nylander is tied for second in NHL postseason scoring with Edmonton Oilers star Connor McDavid, with 13 points thus far.
For a player who’s been through all the ups and downs the Toronto market has to offer, Nylander’s playoff success has to feel redemptive for the 29-year-old Swedish forward.
But for head coach Craig Berube, he has a pretty simple plan to deal with one of his team leaders: let him do his thing.
“I just leave him alone,” Berube said. “He doesn’t want me to talk to him. Just leave him alone. I probably should just leave him alone… he is a high-end player. He really is. I don’t think he feels pressure or anything. He just plays.”
"What have you, if anything, learned about him (Nylander)…"
Berube: "Just leave him alone…" 😂😭 pic.twitter.com/Ra9SoaamzW
— B/R Open Ice (@BR_OpenIce) May 8, 2025
Nylander is now on his third coach in his NHL career, with Berube succeeding Mike Babcock and Sheldon Keefe as Toronto’s bench boss over the last decade. In his first year under the helm of the team, Berube’s roster has already picked up more playoff wins in a single run than both his predecessors.
In March 2024, Keefe called out Nylander directly for “accountability” in a game against the New York Rangers, cutting the forward’s ice-time down when referencing “purposefully stepping outside the structure and the system.”
Under Babcock, Nylander was still in the early stages of his development as an NHL player, but never averaged more than 16:41 of ice time in his three full seasons with him as coach, almost three full minutes per game less than he’s playing under Berube.
And while a hands-off approach to Nylander might not be the only defining factor, it likely isn’t a coincidence that Berube seems to be getting the most out of his star forward in ways his previous coaches hadn’t always been able to unlock.
In his eight previous playoff runs, Nylander had put up 43 points in 54 playoff games, a 0.79 career mark. While respectable, it’s nothing like what he’s been doing now, as under Berube, he’s put up 1.62 points per game through his first two series.
“Nothing gets to him. He doesn’t feel pressure. I could be wrong, but this is what I see. There is no too big a stage for this guy. He thrives on this stuff. He looks forward to it. He wants to be in all of those critical situations,” Berube added.
Nylander has potted six goals for Toronto in the postseason, including one in Wednesday night’s Game 2 victory over the Florida Panthers to even the score at two goals apiece.
“When he smells something, he is there,” Berube added. “[His second-period goal] is as high-end as it gets with his hands. He has great, great skill with his hands. Those are unreal hands he has, he has the ability on his skates with his cut-backs and all of that.”
While there’s still plenty left to be written about how Berube and Nylander’s playoff run may end, they’ve shown great early returns thus far in their first season working together.