The reason Leafs William Nylander was absent from Auston Matthews captaincy event is revealed

During the Maple Leafs' press conference to announce the nomination of Auston Matthews as the franchise's 26th captain , many key members of the organization were on site to support both Matthews and Tavares during the event.

Mitch Marner and Morgan Rielly were among those present, in addition to Leafs' alumni Doug Gilmour and Wendel Clark.

However, many people were worried to see that William Nylander wasn't there.

With General Manager Brad Treliving confirming that John Tavares would be an alternate captain, this could mean that Nylander could be the one to see the letter on his jersey being removed. Ultimately, it turned out that it had nothing to do with that issue.

William Nylander was in Sweden, taking some well-deserved time off and preparing for the next season. Last Wednesday, during the Toronto Maple Leafs' press conference, William Nylander was playing golf with his brother, Alex Nylander.

This year promises to be an entertaining one for the Nylander family. For the first time since they joined the NHL, Alexander and William, the Nylander brothers, will be in the same organization.

Alex, 26, was drafted eighth overall by the Buffalo Sabres in 2016, and has taken part in 121 NHL games over the course of his career for the Sabres, Chicago Blackhawks, Pittsburgh Penguins, and Columbus Blue Jackets. He has also played over 300 games in the AHL and scored over 200 points for the Rochester Americans, Rockford IceHogs, and the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins.

While Alex will play in the AHL with the Marlies this season, William will enter the first year of his massive eight-year deal with a $11.5M AAV with the Maple Leafs.

He'll try to surpass his career-high 98-point tally that he had in the 2023-24 season. If he can get to the 100-point mark during the next season, the Leafs could be on their way to have one of their best years in recent history.

Source for Alexander Nylander's statistics: Hockey DB
Alexander Nylander

Source for William Nylander's statistics: Hockey DB
William Nylander