William Nylander comments on playing NHL games in Sweden this week
The Maple Leafs have officially touched down in Sweden ahead of this weekend's slate of Global Series games, involving the Leafs, Senators, Red Wings and Wild. The Leafs don't play until Friday against Detroit and will close out their Sweden trip with a Sunday afternoon matchup against Minnesota, but wasted no time in getting on the ice, briefly stopping by the hotel before heading to Avicii Arena in Stockholm for a skate to become acclimated to the time change and familiarize themselves with the rink.
For William Nylander, the opportunity to play NHL games in Sweden is a dream come true and something he never thought would happen. He spoke with NHL.com this week and revealed just how important this opportunity is to him and all of his Swedish teammates.
"I never really dreamed that I'd get to play NHL games over there, and now it's going to happen. I mean, you never think about a scenario like that, and now it's about to come to life. It's going to be very special.
I think we're all super excited to go back to Sweden with friends and family... I mean, I have some friends and family that haven't been able to make it over to watch a game, so I think that'd be very special for them to see that. And, of course, all the people in Sweden can now watch some NHL hockey games at a decent hour there. Obviously, with games in North America, the games start at like 1 a.m. [in Sweden], so not a lot of kids can watch those games. I think this is an important chance to show them NHL hockey."
I think we're all super excited to go back to Sweden with friends and family... I mean, I have some friends and family that haven't been able to make it over to watch a game, so I think that'd be very special for them to see that. And, of course, all the people in Sweden can now watch some NHL hockey games at a decent hour there. Obviously, with games in North America, the games start at like 1 a.m. [in Sweden], so not a lot of kids can watch those games. I think this is an important chance to show them NHL hockey."
Nylander is no stranger to playing for his home country. He has donned the Tre Kronor blue and yellow a number of times during international play, but the chance to don the blue and white of the Toronto Maple Leafs in front of friends and family in Sweden seems to be very important to him.
Nylander spends his off-seasons back home in Sweden every year, so the chance to actually play NHL games there must be surreal. Hopefully he and the Leafs will be able to celebrate a couple of wins this weekend to make it that much sweeter.
| POLL | ||
NOVEMBRE 14 | 295 ANSWERS William Nylander comments on playing NHL games in Sweden this week What type of a record will the Leafs post in their 2 games on this Sweden trip? | ||
| 2-0-0 | 181 | 61.4 % |
| 1-1-0 | 84 | 28.5 % |
| 0-2-0 | 14 | 4.7 % |
| 0-1-1 | 16 | 5.4 % |
| List of polls | ||
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