Brad Marchand had some fun at William Nylander’s expense after the Toronto Maple Leafs forward appeared in a workout photo shared by the NHL.
The NHL’s official Instagram account posted several photos of players training during the offseason. Nylander was featured doing dumbbell curls on a balance trainer next to a pool.
Marchand spotted the photo and left a comment:
“Don’t hurt yourself with all that weight willy”
Nylander is preparing for another season with Toronto after signing an eight-year, $92 million contract in January 2024. The deal carries an $11.5 million annual cap hit and runs through the 2031-32 season.
Brad Marchand is also under contract with the Florida Panthers. He signed a six-year, $31.5 million extension in July 2025, worth $5.25 million per season through 2030-31.
Brad Marchand knows the risks of an offseason setback
Brad Marchand’s joke about William Nylander’s workout came with a bit of irony. While telling the Maple Leafs forward not to hurt himself, Marchand is dealing with a setback of his own after undergoing offseason surgery.
Marchand revealed the surgery in a video on social media. He said he had hoped to avoid an operation but eventually had to go through with it.
“Unfortunately I had to have surgery. I was trying to fix without surgery but unfortunately that wasn’t able to happen and had to kind of do it last minute.”
The surgery has already changed Marchand’s offseason plans. He won’t be able to take part in Zee’s Final Shift, a farewell charity game for his former Bruins teammate Zdeno Chara on Aug. 21 in Trencin, Slovakia.
“With the time and the recovery I’m going to need I won’t be able to make it and play in the game.”
Marchand knows all too well how quickly injuries can change plans. He had hip surgery after the 2021-22 season and underwent a sports hernia procedure following the 2023-24 campaign.
The 38-year-old is coming off a season that was also affected by injury. He played 52 games for Florida and finished with 54 points, including 27 goals and 27 assists.
Marchand joined the Panthers from Boston in March 2025 and helped them win the Stanley Cup that year, scoring 10 goals during their playoff run. He now has 1,034 points in 1,152 regular-season games and 158 points in 180 playoff appearances.
The Panthers are scheduled to begin their 2026-27 season against the Carolina Hurricanes on Sept. 29. Marchand will have several weeks to recover before then, but his comment to Nylander now carries a little more meaning given what he is dealing with himself.
Edited by Sonali Verma
