William Nylander left the Toronto Maple Leafs’ preseason game against the Montreal Canadiens on Thursday after a first-period collision. The incident occurred when Nick Robertson, in an attempt to push Nylander forward, inadvertently caused him to lose his balance and fall headfirst into the leg of Montreal’s Christian Dvorak.
Nylander went directly to the locker room, and the Leafs’ PR staff later confirmed he would not return for the remainder of the game.
Following the play, Nick Kypreos criticized Robertson’s decision, calling it “bush league.” However, others argued that Nylander’s lack of speed on the backcheck led to Robertson’s shove as he tried to close the gap on the puck carrier.
The Leafs announced Nylander’s removal was for precautionary reasons, though his status will likely be monitored closely in the coming days.
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It wasn’t the only scare for Toronto in the game. Captain John Tavares took an awkward hit from Canadiens forward Michael Pezzetta, appearing slow to get up but remaining on the bench. Meanwhile, defenseman Chris Tanev took a shot off his hand and was seen flexing it after the incident, but he too stayed in the game.
This comes on the heels of Auston Matthews being pulled from the lineup earlier in the week due to a minor “upper-body” issue. With multiple players now dealing with bumps and bruises, Toronto may need to proceed cautiously with its star talent as they gear up for the regular season.
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