William Nylander almost missed game 6 against Ottawa

Last night, the Toronto Maple Leafs advanced to the second round of the Stanley Cup playoffs after beating the Ottawa Senators 4–2. However, a roster mistake by Toronto nearly cost them William Nylander’s presence on the ice. Now, Ottawa fans are all saying the same thing…

The young Ottawa Senators struggled at the beginning of their series against the Toronto Maple Leafs, dubbed The Battle of Ontario. After losing three straight games, the Senators turned the series around by winning two in a row, making Leafs fans around the world increasingly nervous. But in Game 6 in Ottawa, the Maple Leafs managed to close out the series with a 4–2 win. William Nylander had a huge impact on the game, recording one assist and two goals—including the game-winning empty-netter with just 19 seconds left.

William Nylander almost didn’t play

But Nylander came very close to not participating in the game at all. Somehow, there was a mix-up on the Maple Leafs’ roster, which listed William Nylander as a healthy scratch and instead included his brother, Alexander Nylander, on the playing roster.
According to NHL rules, if an official—on or off the ice—spots a player in uniform who is not listed on the roster, they can notify the team to correct the error. However, if the puck has already dropped and the issue is discovered afterward, the ineligible player must leave the game. Now, Senators fans are voicing strong opinions about how the referees handled the situation.

“Kind of greasy”

Many Senators fans are claiming that the referees and the league gave Toronto an unfair advantage by alerting them to the roster error before the game began. They believe Toronto should have been forced to remove William Nylander from the game once it started.
“I think it’s kind of greasy the refs told them. The refs should look at it and enforce it if they break the rules. They shouldn’t go around telling them they made an error. Seems like favoritism. How do we know they didn’t want to scratch Willy this game?” one person wrote on X.
“Refs legit saving Leafs?” another posted.
“Refs vs Sens,” a third wrote.
Toronto will face the Florida Panthers in the second round. Below, you can watch NHL insider Elliotte Friedman explain the rule.