It wasn’t until William Nylander, the ‘Breakaway Man,’ went toe-to-toe with fellow Swede and Wild goaltender Filip Gustavsson on yet another chance in alone but striking the

Among the NHL teammates who will be on opposite benches during the 4-Nations Face-Off include Toronto Maple Leafs stars Auston Matthews and William Nylander. Matthews, who grew up in Scottsdale, Ariz., will be representing the USA while Nylander will be representing his native Sweden.

Nylander scored a goal in Wednesday's 3-1 loss to the Wild. Nylander struggled for a couple of weeks in late December and early January, but he's bounced back well. He has six goals and two assists over his last nine contests,

Squaring off with nearly identical records entering Wednesday’s contest, the Toronto Maple Leafs were presented with a key opportunity to get out of a rut against a quality Minnesota Wild team, with a four-game road trip on the horizon before the 4 Nations Face-Off break.

John Hynes knows that William Nylander can lead the Maple Leafs out of the little hole they’ve dug for themselves. The Leafs have scored just two goals in losing their past two games, and neither came off the stick of Nylander after the star winger had four goals in the previous three games, all Toronto victories.

Jared Spurgeon and Marat Khusnutdinov scored in the first period, Filip Gustavsson stopped 31 shots, and the Minnesota Wild beat the Toronto Maple Leafs 3-1.

Auston Matthews and William Nylander have been Toronto Maple Leafs teammates for nine seasons. They've displayed elite chemistry throughout their time together.

The Wild have struggled since the injuries to these two occurred, winning just four of the 10 games since Brodin was injured, allowing 31.3 shots per game, and ranking 30th in GAA while allowing four or more goals in seven of the 10 outings.

The Toronto Maple Leafs lost 3-1 to the Minnesota Wild and have scored only one goal in each of their last three games in losing three in a row.

Connor McDavid won’t be the only Edmonton Oilers player wearing a captain’s letter on his sweater in the Four Nations Face-Off next month. Defenceman Mattias Ekholm has also been named an alternate captain when he suits up with Team Sweden in Montreal and Boston, running from Feb. 12-20.

Auston Matthews will head the United States’ leadership group at the 4 Nations Face-Off. USA Hockey announced on Thursday afternoon that the Maple Leafs captain will be its captain for the event in Montreal and Boston, running from Feb. 12-20. Matthew Tkachuk of the Florida Panthers and Charlie McAvoy each will wear an ‘A’ for the United States.