A fully healthy wrist, a new club and a new regimen are some of the things Nick Paul is betting on for a return to form.
Nick Paul spent last season fighting through a wrist ailment that would not let him play the game the way he wanted. This summer, he rebuilt the rest of his body around a simple goal: feel right again.
Speaking Monday at the Leafs Legends Golf Tournament, the Mississauga native said the work started well before he pulled on Toronto gear.
“Switched up my routine a little bit this summer,” Paul said. “A little bit more like cardio and just getting my hips active, getting my base right and then building on top of the base, building muscle and strength on top of the base. But it’s been good ever since I got traded. Here just been skating a lot as well. We’ve been having some good skates out there. Yeah, just be ready to go.”
That message lined up with what he told reporters on a Zoom call in early July, days after the Maple Leafs acquired him from Tampa Bay for Dennis Hildeby and two draft picks. Last season’s production, 15 points in 51 games after back-to-back 40-point campaigns, left a mark.
“Last year, to me, I wasn’t happy with it,” Paul said then. “It leaves a bad taste in my mouth. But the best thing I did was get my wrist healthy. I couldn’t even stickhandle. It hurt so bad. So getting that surgery was a must.”
He also dealt with a high ankle sprain. The combination, he said in July, put fire in his belly. Coming home only added to it.
“Now getting traded to the Leafs and having a new opportunity, playing in the city I grew up in is even more fuel to the fire.”
Paul described how the summer training changed. After years of skating with Nikita Kucherov in Tampa, he moved to private sessions with a trainer who works across sports.
“I’ve just been taking care of the body, making sure that I feel healthy,” he said in July. “And honestly, this is one of the best that I felt with my body. No aches and pains. I’ve taken care of everything.”
Monday, he pointed to another piece of the puzzle now that he is in Toronto: Andy O’Brien, the club’s new vice president of sport performance.
“(Andy) O’Brien is amazing at what he does,” Paul said. “There’s a lot that goes behind that and he’s got a great team around him. So having him come in and just kind of explain his thoughts and explain his reasoning for why we do everything and what we’re going to be doing. It’s super exciting.”
The short training camp does not worry him. Everyone, he said, arrives in shape. The real work is chemistry, and the informal skates and team events have helped.
“The biggest thing is just going around, just get out of your shell a little bit, talk to everyone,” Paul said. “There’s a lot of different personalities when it comes to makeup of a hockey team. I’m just kind of feeling those out. It’s been great so far. Obviously the skates, hanging out. We had a little fantasy draft. A couple things here and there where the guys and everyone are getting together. It definitely makes it a lot easier when you’re hanging out with everyone.”
Having Darren Raddysh, his former Lightning teammate, in the room has smoothed the move. So has the welcome from Auston Matthews.
“He was one of the first guys who came up to me, shook my hand, and talked for a little bit,” Paul said. “He’s awesome. I think he’s a great leader, a great room guy, and you can see the presence he demands around the room.”
The big question is where will Paul fit in amongst a plethora of new forwards. Toronto’s first day of on-ice sessions on Thursday should provide some answers.
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