William Nylander Officially Joins Team Sweden: Full Roster for 4 Nations Face-Off Revealed
Toronto Maple Leafs superstar William Nylander joined a star-studded Team Sweden roster as the team prepares for the 4 Nations Face-Off.
With the 4 Nations Face-Off taking place from February 12-20, it will be up to Canada, USA, Sweden, and Finland to duke it out for international hockey dominance. Team Finland and Sweden announced their rosters on Wednesday afternoon and both include a Toronto Maple Leaf.
With Jani Hakanpaa joining Team Finland in a surprising addition, an unsurprising one was the naming of William Nylander to the Swedish team as well.
Nylander joins a Sweden team that has been built for not only an exciting brand of hockey, but one that can dominate at both ends of the ice.
Some of the big names joining him on Team Sweden include Victor Hedman, Filip Forsberg, Gustav Nyquist, and Erik Karlsson. The team also added a strong goaltending trio of Filip Gustavsson, Jacob Markstrom, and Linus Ullmark, showing that GM Anders Lundberg values defense and goaltending a lot.
Nylander's addition shouldn't be too surprising given the season he's having. Coming off back-to-back 40-goal seasons, he leads the Maple Leafs with 15 goals this season and has been a big part of why Toronto is sitting atop of the Atlantic Division.
For his career, Nylander has been every bit as advertised since being drafted 8th overall in 2014. In 627 games, the 28-year old has 232 goals and 322 assists while also contributing 43 points in 54 playoff games.
The older son of former NHLer Michael Nylander, William's addition to Team Sweden follows in his father's footsteps as he was selected 10 times for the World Championships, dating back to 1992.
Also getting a chance to play with his brother on Toronto this year, being selected to the national team must feel surreal. For what it's worth, Nylander has earned every bit of it, and will prove to be a dangerous weapon for Sweden.
With Team Sweden and Finland already announcing their selections, fans await the Canadian and American selections set to take place at 6:30pm ET on Wednesday night.
| POLL | ||
Are you surprised William Nylander was selected for Team Sweden? | ||
| Yes! | 30 | 5 % |
| No, clearly he deserves it | 565 | 95 % |
| List of polls | ||
