Maple Leafs star breaks silence on postseason absence, addresses Game 4 status

Whether or not William Nylander can return for Game 4 of the Eastern Conference first-round series against the Boston Bruins, the Toronto Maple Leafs need him.

Down 2-1 to the Bruins going into Saturday's 8 p.m. ET contest, the Maple Leafs have scored only six goals in the series. 

Nylander, who had 40 goals and 98 points during the regular season, is third among all Toronto players in playoff points since 2016-17. He was the Maple Leafs' leading scorer during the 2021 playoffs with eight points in seven games.

After not missing a game during the regular season, Nylander woke up the morning after the final regular-season contest with an issue that required attention and has continued to feel "pretty stiff" and has missed the first three playoff games.

According to Joshua Kloke of The Athletic, Nylander certainly did not look stiff as he went through Toronto's full practice on Friday. However, afterward, Nylander still would not reveal the actual injury, nor would he say for sure if he will be able to play on Saturday.

"Look, that's just personal," he said about the exact nature of his issue. "So I'm not going to get into that."

And will he play in Game 4?

"I don't know, we'll see," Nylander said.

Although he was not saying anything, at least Nylander was talking on Friday. It's the first time he has addressed his situation with the media.

Of course, Maple Leafs coach Sheldon Keefe failed to shed more light on the situation.

"He looked good to me on the ice," Keefe said. "In terms of his status, we'll have to address that tomorrow."

Finally, Nylander offered, "You've been through the entire season and to miss and to miss these first games in the playoffs has obviously been tough. This is the time you want to play. Hopefully, I'm back soon."

The rest of the Maple Leafs certainly hope so.