The thing with Nylander that I truly admire is his ability to be unfazed, he's someone who has it in him to rise to the occasion despite media + fan backlash and pressure. Is he a f***head sometimes who coasts during the regular season? Yes. Does he make soft plays when he has the ability to outmuscle and grind it out? Also yes. But, he ultimately hates to lose and he just needs a bit of a kick in the ass, kinda like Kadri did. He's a big game player and he's shown that multiple times despite getting the shorter end of the stick in terms of usage / minutes and also linemates (e.g. having to play 3C when Kadri got suspended, being on the second PP unit for many seasons etc). Also, despite receiving the most vitriol and xenophobia of the young Leafs trio, he seems to be the best at actually handling that adversity, growing from it and letting it roll off his shoulder. Matthews and Marner have had more entitled / arrogant behaviour than Nylander has IMO yet those traits are always associated with Willy instead. Willy is a bit cocky too, but it's more of a quiet confidence, he just goes out and lets his play do the talking. Not to mention he's got the best contract of the 3 by a country mile.
He also hasn't had major off-ice issues, yes the contract negotiations were rough but he's stayed out of trouble otherwise. Matthews had the embarrassing security guard incident while Marner seems to have a problematic posse and Paul Marner is an absolute asshole, dude makes Michael Nylander look like a saint. At least Michael was an NHLer (and a good one at that), I can respect him looking out for his son from a 'been there done that' lens of experience.
When Nylander is engaged, he's a dominant player and very fun to watch. He makes the game look effortless and is great at creating space for himself and protecting the puck. If this core has any success, he will be a big part of it.
