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William Nylander follows up his Instagram apology with another message


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Charlie McAfee
January 26, 2026  (1:46 PM)
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Toronto Maple Leafs forward William Nylander watches the Maple Leafs vs. Avalanche game from the press box.
Photo credit: TSN Sports

William Nylander apologized yet again for his actions and admitted maybe it wasn't the best idea for him to flip the bird to the TV cameras on Sunday afternoon.

The Maple Leafs are in a little bit of hot water with the NHL after William Nylander's actions during their recent game against the Colorado Avalanche and although he's apologized; he may still face some discipline:
Only love for Leafs Nation. Sorry about my moment of frustration today!

Didn't mean to upset anyone. Looking forward to being back on the ice and not in the stands [crying face emoji].

Love Willy.

While he already apologized for his actions, there is still a lot of accountability to be taken and it seems that Nylander is doubling down on his remorse.

William Nylander doubles down on apology after middle finger incident

Nylander once again apologized and explained that it was not the smartest move in the book for him to flip the TV cameras off, and that once he was notified about the importance of what he just did -- he realized how bad it actually was:
Sitting there I got a text message, I was like, 'Oh, not a good idea. Not a good thing to do.' Like I said, I apologize about that.
Clearly there was a miscalculation on Nylander's part and it's unknown who texted the forward to ask him exactly what he was doing but clearly this was someone higher up.
It's not like Nylander didn't know the camera was there, as he hesitated before initiating the gesture and set things in motion.
Craig Berube at least understood the situation and admitted that while Nylander made a mistake, he quickly learned from it:
Made a mistake. He owned up to it. Things happen. People make mistakes. Players make mistakes. Coaches make mistakes. It happens. He knows it's wrong.
Nylander has 48 points in 37 games so far this season, and is currently on the shelf with a groin injury.
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William Nylander follows up his Instagram apology with another message

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