When William Nylander decided to change his sweater number from #29 to #88, it came with a lot of backlash from some within the Toronto fanbase. Many thought that because a legend like Eric Lindros had worn the number for the Buds, that Nylander was not worthy.
As previously reported here, Lindros came out with a Tweet wishing Nylander well in #88 this year and that seemed to take a bit of the heat off of Willie going into the season.
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With an assist in Saturday night's game against St. Louis, Nylander has now put up 23 points in 31 games while wearing his new number. During his brief stint with the Maple Leafs, Lindros scored 22 points in 33 games. So, Nylander has now surpassed Lindros in points while wearing #88 with the Leafs and he did it in two fewer games played.
As Nylander and Lindros are the only two Leafs ever to wear the number, Nylander can now lay claim to being the most prolific player to ever wear #88 in Toronto.
It is worth noting that Nylander is on pace to tie his career high in points. He scored 61 points in each of the 2016-17 and 2017-18 seasons, playing in 81 and 82 games respectively in those years.
Sources: Hockey Reference - W. Nylander; Hockey Reference - E. Lindros
