The NHL put its 2019-20 season on pause March 12 due to the COVID-19 pandemic but remains hopeful to award the Stanley Cup at some point. Although it's unclear if or when it could return, NBC Sports Chicago will recap the season of each Blackhawks player to date in our "season in review" series. Next up is Alex Nylander.
Alex Nylander was acquired by the Blackhawks in the offseason for defenseman prospect Henri Jokiharju, who had quickly earned Joel Quenneville's trust during the 2018-19 season and spent much of his playing time on the first pairing with two-time Norris Trophy winner Duncan Keith. Because of that, Nylander was under a microscope all season long by the Chicago fanbase — fair or not.
While he scored in his season debut as the top-line left winger alongside Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews, Nylander struggled to find a consistent spot in the lineup and at times was a healthy scratch. Consistency has really been the biggest challenge for him ever since he turned pro.
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Nylander's best stretch of the season came in the final five games of March before the season was suspended when he averaged a point per game with two goals and three assists on top of a plus-4 rating.
The offensive upside is certainly evident with Nylander, who's a fun player to watch in practice. He can stickhandle, he can dangle, he can shoot. But putting the whole package together in a game, which includes playing with more energy without the puck, is something that's a work in progress.
"He's still in the developing phase," GM Stan Bowman said in February. "He's proven that he's an NHL player. ... He started the year higher up in the lineup, which maybe didn't serve him as well because you put a lot of pressure on yourself to score when you're up playing with productive players and you want to be a productive player. Tactically, when he's down the lineup, now it's like a progression.
"If you can nail that down to be someone that the coach can trust to use, then you would like him to find his offensive skillset, he's got the ability to make plays and buy time and space with the puck and he can shoot the puck. We've seen flashes of it but it's not the full picture yet, so hopefully we can see him build on becoming not just an NHL player but an offensive NHL player. That's what we'd like him to take that next step at some point."
NHL
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