Nylanders making Ontario hockey a family affair
Truthfully, Michael Nylander is a better teammate than a coach. But according to his son, it’s mostly for selfish reasons.
“On the ice, he likes to pass the puck,” Alex Nylander said of his father. “So I always got the puck if I got to play with him.” And as a coach? Alex Nylander, who had just finished an hour-and-ahalf practice with the Mississauga Steelheads that featured some old-fashioned sprints and energy-sapping battle drills, smiled. A moment ago, Michael Nylander was in earshot.
“I guess he’s very good at both.”
That Alex Nylander is in a position to even compare the two roles is quite remarkable. After all, Alex was only 11 years old when his father left the NHL after playing 920 games for seven different teams. And yet, one year after oldest son William played with his dad in Sweden, the 43-year-old Michael Nylander suited up for one game with his youngest son last season.
“It was a fluke,” said Michael, who is now an assistant coach with the Ontario Hockey League’s Steelheads. “I happened to be in Sweden and the team I played for wanted to bring him up from junior because he was playing really well. It’s not so common and it’s not that easy, because we’re lots of years apart.
“That he got good at the same age where I can still play, it’s nothing that I ever thought would happen.”
It’s funny how things turn out, he said, sitting outside the coach’s office at the Hershey Centre in Mississauga, Ont. When he left the NHL in 2009, he never once imagined he would become Sweden’s Gordie Howe and play parts of two more seasons with his two sons. And he certainly never thought that once his playing career was done that he would move to Mississauga, a town he previously could not find on a map, and begin coaching in the OHL.
But some things happen for a reason.
In April, Michael Nylander underwent surgery for a nagging injury that had reduced him to a playercoach position last season. He had hoped he would be back playing one more year in Sweden this season. But that shoulder is still not feeling right. And when the Steelheads selected Alex in the import draft, an opportunity surfaced for both father and son.
“I’d never seen OHL games live, but Alex started thinking about it and he decided he wanted to try this,” said Michael Nylander. “And then all of a sudden, I got asked to help out and be an assistant coach. I think in the OHL, it’s run closer in some ways to the NHL. That’s a really good advantage.”
There are other advantages to being in Mississauga. William Nylander, whom the Toronto Maple Leafs selected with the eighth-overall pick in the 2014 NHL Entry Draft, is playing in the minors in Toronto. The two brothers are back living together with their dad, while their mom and four sisters work out the logistics of moving over from Sweden.
“Of course, it’s lots of fun,” said William Nylander, who has five points in four games with the Marlies and has been to a couple of Steelheads games. “It’s always nice to get home-cooked meals from my father and see my brother every day.”
The two brothers are hoping to stay even closer this winter at the world junior championships in Finland. William, who was a star player for Sweden at last year’s tournament, already has a roster spot secured. But it will be more difficult for the younger Alex to sneak his way onto a team that generally sticks to 19-year-olds, although with eight goals and 16 points in 11 games — most among rookies and tied for third in OHL scoring — he could prove to be an exception.
“It’s a goal for the brothers to play together,” said Michael. “I have a brother who I had a chance to play with. It’s great if it happens. But to play in the world juniors, Alex has to be a really good player here, because they have lots of good players in Sweden.”
“He’s really good,” NHL Central Scouting director Dan Marr said of Alex Nylander, who is a potential top-10 pick in next year’s NHL Entry Draft. “I see similar mannerisms (between Alex and William). He’s an NHL skater already right now and he can make decisions and make plays at topend speed.”
So who would get the puck if the brothers were playing on the same line together?
“I would say he would pass to me,” said Alex, who jokes that he’s a centimetre taller and a lot stronger than his older brother. “But it’s difficult, because we both like to pass and we both like to shoot. Honestly, it doesn’t matter. Just playing on a line with him would be a dream for me.”