Toronto Maple Leafs: Nylander and Kapanen escape injury in car accident

There were a moment of concern for the Toronto Maple Leafs and their fans on Friday afternoon, when it was reported that William Nylander and Kasperi Kapanen were involved in a car accident.

It would be almost an understatement to say its been an eventful start to December for William Nylander. He finally signed a contract extension with the Toronto Maple Leafs on Saturday, followed by making his season debut against the Detroit Red Wings on Thursday night.

Then on Friday afternoon, Nylander and teammate Kasperi Kapanen were involved in a car accident. As reported by Katherine DeClerq of CP24, the incident happened in Etobicoke near the Leafs’ practice facility, on Kipling Avenue.

DeClerq added that it was a minor accident involving one other car and took place following practice at around 2:30 pm. Fortunately for all of those involved, no one was injured.

There has been criticism (and even some resentment) from certain section of the fan base and media alike, regarding the size of Nylander’s new deal. As such, while the accident wasn’t serious, hopefully it helps put things into perspective for those individuals.

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Nylander had played his first game of the 2018-19 season just the night before, in the 5-4 overtime loss to the Red Wings. He was held scoreless after playing just 12:29, with the team trying to ease him back into action.

Meanwhile, Kapanen is off to the best start of his young NHL career, and has become a key part of the Leafs’ roster. He has 21 points (11 goals and 10 assists) in 29 games and has the second-best plus/minus rating on the team, at +15.

This was the second vehicle incident of the week involving the Leafs. As per Kevin McGran of the Toronto Star, the team bus broke down on the way back from Buffalo, resulting in Wednesday’s practice being cancelled.

This had the knock-on effect of Nylander being unable to get any practice in, prior to his season debut. Unsurprisingly, the result was his timing was off against the Red Wings, in his first game of any kind since April.

The Swedish international will get his next opportunity to start earning his contract on Saturday night, when the Leafs play the Boston Bruins in the first of a five-game road trip. He will likely play on a line alongside Auston Matthews and Patrick Marleau.

We can all be thankful that Nylander and Kapanen were uninjured in Friday’s car accident. With this now confirmed, let’s look ahead for both players; more specifically, what kind of production are you predicting for each individual in the coming months? Will Kapanen continue his current form? Will Nylander justify his new deal? Share your thoughts in the comments section below.