William Nylander is getting his minutes by playing on both of Toronto's power-play units. Nylander is also part of a new five-forward look with the man advantage. Nick Robertson is struggling to find the back of the net with the Toronto Maple Leafs this season. The 23-year-old has just one goal to his name through 19 games this year. It's not due to a lack of chances, though, as Robertson has gotten plenty throughout this season. He's just unable to finish his chances, which has been the problem. Robertson is averaging 11:17 of ice time this season, gets power play time, and has played among the middle-six in Toronto's forward group. He's shooting at 3.4 percent, the lowest ever in his short NHL career. (The forward's average shooting percentage throughout the last two seasons has been 12.4 percent.) "I think I've had my chances to get a few on the board, but it is what it is," Robertson said on Nov. 22. "I just gotta keep plugging away and not worrying about the past, not worrying about where it's at and just kind of take it game-by-game and focus on what I can do to have a good game." At Maple Leafs practice on Friday, Robertson skated on the third line alongside Fraser Minten, who has one goal and one assist in three games, and Steven Lorentz, who has three goals and one assist through 22 games. Maple Leafs head coach Craig Berube said following the team's skate on Friday that Robertson needed to "get more greasy" around the net, which should help him find success in scoring. And once one goes on for the forward, goals will likely keep coming. "The thing for me, the positive side of it all is he just keeps working, which is good. Even today (Friday) in practice, he's a very hard worker. He wants to do well," Berube said. "I just think, when I watch, and watch Nick, he's got to get around the net a little bit more and find some dirty goals. I think, sometimes when you're snakebitten like that, you're shot. It's not working. It's not going in. You gotta get greasy around the net." [embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GDbxU4W5O0E[/embed] Robertson's coming off a fascinating offseason where he reportedly requested a trade from the Maple Leafs before signing a one-year, $875,000 contract with the club on Sept. 10. He's also dealt with several injuries early in his career, plus the COVID-19 pandemic, which has likely stunted Robertson's development a bit. Toronto selected the forward in the second round (53rd overall) in the 2019 NHL Draft. Robertson has 18 goals and 17 assists for 35 points in 106 NHL games with the Maple Leafs.
