Nylander missed his fourth consecutive game on Friday with a groin injury that plagued him earlier in the season.
If Friday's 6-3 loss to Mitch Marner and the Vegas Golden Knights taught us anything, it's that the Toronto Maple Leafs are hurting without the services of their top scorer.
Good news: just over 12 hours after the loss, William Nylander and Dakota Joshua were both on the ice ahead of Maple Leafs practice. It's the first time both have been seen on the ice since suffering their respective injuries.
The two were on the ice for around 20 minutes or so, and weren't going too hard.
Nylander missed his fourth consecutive game on Friday with a groin injury, which he reaggravated on Jan. 15 in Vegas. Joshua suffered a lacerated kidney on Dec. 28 against the Detroit Red Wings and has missed 13 straight games.
"We'll see where (Nylander) progresses, and how he felt," said head coach Craig Berube on Saturday. "I haven't talked to the trainers yet, or him after the skate yet, but we'll see how he felt. Hopefully he can keep getting on the ice here and be ready to go.
"I can't give you a timeline on that yet."
Nylander missed six games earlier this season due to the same ailment, and the forward is expected to be a big part of Sweden's team competing at the 2026 Olympics in Milan in just a couple of weeks.
"I'm sure it's tough," Sweden and Maple Leafs teammate Oliver Ekman-Larsson said of Nylander being out. "We've all been in that kind of situation. You want to play. You want to help your team. But sometimes you got to listen to your body at the same time.
"You got to manage it and be smart about it so you don't miss even more games. But I'm sure it's tough for him."
Despite only playing in 37 of Toronto's 51 games this season, Nylander leads the club with 17 goals and 48 points.
Berube added on Friday night that Joshua was a ways away from returning. Still, him being on the ice on Saturday morning was a positive development. The 29-year-old has six goals and 10 points in 36 games for Toronto this season.
"He skated," Berube said, " but he's still a ways away. It's not like he's close."