By Jourdon LaBarber – Sabres.com (@JourdonLaBarber)
In the first round of an NHL Draft where any pick beyond the first two became a guessing man’s game, Alexander Nylander must have been one of the few people in First Niagara Center who knew precisely how his night was going to pan out.
Sure, there was doubt with every team that approached the podium – Calgary seemed like a real possibility at No. 6 – but there was one destination in particular where the interview went so well and the interest seemed so high that he thought it was the perfect fit.
Four words from Tim Murray were all it took to affirm Nylander’s belief: “Buffalo selects Alex Nylander.”
“It was an unbelievable moment, the best moment of my life,” Nylander said of being selected by the Buffalo Sabres with the No. 8 pick at the 2016 Draft, an announcement met with an applause from the hometown crowd that Nylander said was unlike anything he’d ever received.
The selection adds yet another element of intrigue to the budding rivalry between the Sabres and their neighbors to the north, the Toronto Maple Leafs, as it pits him against older brother William, who was taken by Toronto at No. 8 in 2014.
William Nylander made his much-anticipated NHL debut last season, scoring 13 points (6+7) in 22 games.
“It’s gonna be awesome playing against my brother,” Alex said, smiling.
He’ll have the benefit of joining a cast of talented young players who already took their first step toward restoring a winning tradition to Buffalo last season. Nylander describes himself as a playmaker who makes his linemates better. Someday, his linemates might be Jack Eichel and Sam Reinhart.
“It’s perfect,” Nylander said. “A lot of young players, it’s a really good team trying to build up now and they’re going to be really good for next year … It’s just going to be amazing playing with them.”
While it will ultimately depend on his camp and the decision made by Buffalo’s coaches and front office, Nylander’s current goal is to join his future teammates in the NHL next season. He wants to put on size, he says – he’s six feet tall and currently listed at 179 pounds – but he believes that a transition to the League next season is possible.
Kris Baker of SabresProspects.com calls Nylander “a dynamic playmaker who can maintain a handle on the puck while splitting seams and quickly finding his linemates.”
He certainly made the transition to the Ontario Hockey League look easy, scoring 75 points (28+47) in 57 games last season for the Mississauga Steelheads, his first in the OHL. He also represented Sweden at the World Junior Championship in January and scored nine points (4+5).
When he does make it to the NHL, he’ll relish the opportunity to play against his brother. They’re two years apart and have only been opponents in scrimmages, so the experience will be relatively new – especially if the crowds are anything like those of an average game between the Sabres and Leafs.
But off the ice, they’re family. Now, they’ll be living a mere 90 minutes apart.
“It’s going to be nice. We grew up together and we’re very close with each other so it’s going to be very fun,” he said. “It’s going to be really competitive and it’s going to be a lot of fun. Hopefully, my team wins.”
