Toronto Maple Leafs forward William Nylander has been named Sweden’s top hockey player of the year.

The annual honor, named the GuldPucken, is given to the hockey player of the year from Sweden. The tradition began in 1956, and the country opened the award to Swedish NHL players in 2015.

William’s father, Michael, who played in the NHL for parts of 15 seasons, revealed to William that he had won the 2025 Goldpucken. It’s the first time a player on the Maple Leafs has won the award. Florida Panthers defenseman Gustav Forsling won it last year after winning the Stanley Cup.

Nylander’s coming off his best goalscoring season to date. The 29-year-old had 45 goals in 82 games in 2024-25, finishing atop the Maple Leafs and only trailing Edmonton Oilers forward Leon Draisaitl, who scored 52 goals, for the most in the league.

Fellow Swede Jesper Bratt, a forward on the New Jersey Devils, was Nylander’s only countryman to finish higher than him in points last season. The 27-year-old tallied 88 points (21 goals and 67 assists) in 81 games.

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In an interview with Expressen’s Adam Johansson, Nylander said it was special to win the Goldpucken, adding that while he doesn’t talk about it, winning the trophy was always in the back of his mind. Nylander also credited his Toronto teammates for helping him achieve the honor.

Although he was born in Calgary, Alberta, Nylander has always dubbed Sweden home. He’s represented them on the international stage numerous times, including at the 4 Nations Face-Off and World Championships earlier this spring, after going out in the second round of the NHL playoffs to the Panthers.

He's also already one of the six players named to Team Sweden's 2026 Winter Olympics roster.

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Nylander won gold with his home country at the 2017 World Championships, where he was also named the tournament’s MVP. While speaking with Johansson this week, the forward said winning gold with Sweden, winning the Gold Puck this year, and playing in his home country with the Maple Leafs during the NHL’s Global Series in 2023 are the highlights of his career thus far.

Since being selected eighth overall by Toronto in the 2014 NHL Draft, Nylander has scored 612 points (262 goals and 350 assists) in 685 NHL games. He’s also put up 26 goals and 32 assists in 67 playoff games with the Maple Leafs.

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Nylander is entering the second season of an eight-year, $92 million contract, which he signed with Toronto in January 2024. The annual average value of the deal is $11.5 million, making him the second-highest paid Swede in the NHL behind Vancouver Canucks forward Elias Pettersson, who’s set to make $11.6 million starting next season.

This article originally appeared on The Hockey News: William Nylander's Father, Michael, Surprises Maple Leafs' Forward With Sweden's Top Hockey Honor

(Top photo of Nylander: Nick Turchiaro / Imagn Images)

As the offseason progresses, fans are growing increasingly anxious about the future of the second-line center position with the Montreal Canadiens. While the situation isn’t exciting, the most likely outcome at this stage is for Kirby Dach to receive another opportunity in the role.

In the last few days, several websites have reported that, according to Daily Faceoff’s Anthony Di Marco, the Canadiens are keeping tabs on McTavish’s availability. That is not what he wrote; he wrote that he “reckon would be keeping close tabs on McTavish’s availability”. In other words, he believes the Habs should be keeping an eye on the situation, but it does not mean that they are.

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Perhaps something got lost in translation, or it’s just down to websites looking for clicks in the dog days of summer, but whichever way you look at it, what we’ve got here is a classic case of misquoting.

There’s no doubt that McTavish would tick a lot of the boxes on the list of what the Canadiens need, but that doesn’t mean he automatically becomes available. Granted, the Anaheim Ducks already have a top-line center in Leo Carlsson, but that doesn’t mean there’s no room for McTavish anymore.

Yes, the Ducks did sign Mikael Granlund on the free agent market, but the fact that he can play center doesn’t mean he will play center. Anaheim has already moved a center this offseason when they sent Trevor Zegras to the Philadelphia Flyers.

It would be perfectly reasonable for the Ducks to start the season with a center line of Carlsson, McTavish, Ryan Strome, and Ryan Poehling (who they acquired in the trade with the Flyers). Of course, there’s the small matter of McTavish not being signed to a contract yet since he’s an RFA, but the truth is that if he were to sign an offer sheet, the Ducks would simply match it.

Anaheim has over $21 million in cap space. It would take an unreasonable offer sheet to get McTavish out of California, and Kent Hughes is not the type to throw caution to the wind and make a move that doesn’t make sense financially. Once upon a time, the Carolina Hurricanes made an unreasonable offer to Jesperi Kotkaniemi. While they did get the player, they are now stuck with him after giving him an eight-year deal that made little sense at the time, given the player’s track record.

The Canadiens will not do that. Nor will they make a reasonable offer sheet that the player will sign and the team will match. Montreal will not be a signing facilitator as they were for Sebastian Aho. The only way McTavish lands in Montreal is if the Ducks are unable to sign him to a number they are comfortable with, and they elect to trade him.

If it is a sign-and-trade deal, however, it would cost roster pieces for the Canadiens and not just futures. This is a player who has three full years of NHL action under his belt, with 43, 42, and 52 points. He is consistently evolving and improving; those players do not come cheap.

If you would like the Canadiens to go hard after McTavish, ask yourself which of the core pieces you’d be willing to sacrifice because he’s not a gamble like Dach or Alex Newhook were; he’s a player that has already started to pan out.

Photo credit: Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images

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As the season quickly approaches for the Golden Knights, star center and alternate captain Jack Eichel has made the most of his off season by hosting his third JE9 premier youth hockey camp. 

Eichel was completely hands-on throughout the week-long camp, personally welcoming boys and girls of all skill levels from across North America. His passion for the game and desire to give back to the sport that has given him so much at an early age led him to establish the program. 

The camp provides the young hockey players with the opportunity to learn from Eichel and other top-level coaches, as well as participate in on-ice drills and games designed to enhance their skills and understanding of the game. The camp welcomes players of all skill levels, from beginners to advanced players, and focuses on individual development and team-building. 

Jack Eichel completed the third JE9 Hockey Camp in Las Vegas, a week of coaching youth hockey players. His camp benefitted Best Buddies, a non-profit which creates opportunities for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities and a cause he’s been involved with… pic.twitter.com/xAqQwVM2X7

— NHL Public Relations (@NHLPR) August 1, 2025

His commitment to making a difference off the ice is evident through his long-standing support of Best Buddies, a nonprofit organization that creates opportunities for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Beyond being a hockey camp, the program has donated $120,000 to Best Buddies International. 

Additionally, through his participation in the Battle 4 Vegas charity softball game, he directed $150,000 to the organization. Altogether, Eichel has contributed $270,000 to Best Buddies during his time in Las Vegas, helping to empower volunteers and expand inclusive opportunities for those the organization serves. 

“It’s an organization I've been involved with for seven or eight years now and there's connections with our family,” Eichel told Golden Knights reporter Gary Lawless. “My sister studied it in school, and she worked in special needs education when she got out of school. I feel like it was always something that I had a passion for. When you're in the position that a lot of us are in and having the ability to make an impact and give back, I looked at Best Buddies as an organization that I felt like I had a lot of passion for and wanted to get involved with and had the opportunity to meet, Anthony Shriver [CEO, Best Buddies] and go to a few Best Buddies events and continued that relationship in Buffalo and then started one in Vegas when I moved there.” 

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PHOTO COURTESY: JE9 Hockey Camp

The Pittsburgh Penguins have made plenty of new additions to their roster this off-season. Among their free-agent signings was forward Justin Brazeau, as the Penguins signed him to a two-year, $3 million contract on July 1.

The Penguins' decision to bring in Brazeau is not too difficult to understand. It is no secret that they needed more size and secondary scoring in their bottom six, and Brazeau should provide them with just that. 

After earning his first NHL contract with the Boston Bruins during the 2023-24 season, Brazeau recorded five goals, seven assists, 43 hits, and a plus-4 rating in 19 games with the Original Six club. Brazeau then posted 11 goals, 11 assists, 22 points, and 123 hits this past season split between the Bruins and Minnesota Wild. With numbers like these, Brazeau has demonstrated that he can be a solid secondary scorer and provide plenty of grit. Thus, he should be a nice fit on a Penguins team that needs more of that. 

Furthermore, when noting that Brazeau is only entering his third NHL season, the possibility of him improving further is certainly there. He should get plenty of chances to succeed on the Penguins, and it will be interesting to see how much of an impact he can make with the Metropolitan Division club from here. 

Penguins Forward Could Become Popular Trade TargetIt is no secret that the Pittsburgh Penguins are open to making trades right now as they continue to retool their roster. Bryan Rust, Erik Karlsson, and Rickard Rakell are three notable names who have been discussed heavily in the rumor mill this off-season. However, with the Penguins willing to make changes, it is fair to wonder if some of their depth players could end up moved, whether that is during the summer or the season. 

Photo Credit:  © Bob Frid-Imagn Images