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Masters on the Maple Leafs' leadership under the microscope, Nylander's finger and Matthews' portrayal
26 Jan 2026
Transcript generated automatically by AI and may contain errors.
Chapter 1: What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
Mark Masters.
Chapter 2: What is the mood around the Maple Leafs team currently?
Mark, how would you describe the mood around the team today? Yeah, I mean, frustration, I guess, is the word of the day, right? Like, you sense the frustration with how this homestand is going. William E. Leonard talked today about feeling frustrated with his injury and not being able to get back sooner. So I'd say probably frustration is the word of the day down here. Okay.
And in terms of Willie's I guess apology or be a culprit today. He is injured. Generally, they wouldn't allow injured players to speak. But what did you make of Willie claiming he gave the finger to the camera out of frustration? Well, I mean, it's funny because we talked to Matthew Nise about it. He's like, I'm not sure what he was doing there. He was smiling when he did it.
And it's kind of funny because he was kind of smiling when he apologized today, too. What do I make of... I don't know. It looked like he just thought he was going to make a joke, right? Like, it was just... He said to Chris Tan, like, watch this. I'll get the camera off us. I'm sure it's frustrating that he's up there. That, you know, he knows we're talking about how he's not playing, maybe.
But, yeah, just, you know, poor judgment. As he said, not a good idea. His phone started lighting up right away. And he's like, oh, that was not a good idea. So... I don't know what to make of it. It's just another thing where bad judgment and he's, you know, Craig Brube wasn't making a big deal of it. He said, listen, you made a mistake. We all make mistakes now.
It's just kind of moving on here. Obviously, Nylander's never really dealt with that. He's missed more games due to injury this year than the rest of his NHL seasons combined. So this has got to be a really strange situation for him to even just be up there so much and being on camera and
i don't know i don't know what to make of it it's uh just i guess another kind of moment that kind of adds to the idea that things are just kind of not together right now mark what is the vibe you're getting from the captain austin matthews i know that you know we just spoke about him not addressing the media after the friday game and the way the team played this weekend like what like when you just look at him or kind of assess where he's at what do you what kind of vibe are you getting
A few games without a point now for him, three in a row. So it's been quiet.
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Chapter 3: What happened with William Nylander's middle finger incident?
Listen, he's trying to keep the focus on the team as a whole. There was a couple of times after the game, I think on Sunday afternoon, where, you know, I was asking him, you know, where is he? How is he feeling? The puck's not falling right now. And he's talking about not being negative, you know, to compound matters. And he's talking about the leadership group needing to step up.
And he was talking about keeping the focus on the main group right now. So... he seemed okay. Like he didn't seem like he was getting too down when we spoke to him Sunday, he did a long media session today. There's been a lot of requests for him to talk about the upcoming Olympics. So they set aside some time today just for people to ask questions solely on the Olympics.
So he met with the media for almost 15 minutes today, just talking about the Olympics. So that was an avenue to kind of maybe talk about something, you know, that's, you know, obviously a better topic right now than how things are going for the Maple Leafs. So I, You know, I don't sense he's too down or anything right now. He seems like he's usually like that self, kind of that unflappable way.
So kind of that's where he's at. I know Krube said today that he met with the leadership group, which is Matthews, the alternate captains, and then a few other players. And he felt like they were good talking about the mental grind that the team's going through, that they're falling behind early in these games at home, which is taking its toll.
So, you know, they are kind of hashing things out about how to be more patient and stuff. But, you know, Austin, for the most part, trying to keep the focus on the team as a whole right now.
So Masters, for everybody listening, take us through the process. For example, either in a morning skate or after a game, who decides who comes out to speak? Do you guys ask for a player or are they offered by PR staff? I was asked that today, so I'm just passing that on to you. We've been certainly talking about, well, Matthews didn't talk on the Marner game and all of that type of stuff.
How does that process unfold for you when you're in those scrums?
I put in requests every day when I'm covering the Leafs. I covered the Marner availabilities on that Friday. I know a lot of my colleagues did, so I wasn't in the Leafs dressing room after the game Friday. I did make it for the end of the availability,
on Friday morning, but a lot of media were at the Vegas hotel, and then we're all waiting outside the Vegas room to talk to Mitch after the game on Friday. But, you know, oftentimes reporters will put in requests. Ultimately, the team will make the decision. I know, like, yesterday, for example, one of the players requested was Scott Lawton, but instead we got Joseph Wohl.
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Chapter 4: How is Auston Matthews handling his recent performance slump?
We'll do it again soon. I don't know what I'm going to do with myself. No Marner questions the rest of the season. That's it. It's over. Tell the Olympics. I'll figure some things out. At the Olympics, Austin can get asked about playing them.
Yeah. Thanks, Mark. Appreciate it. Thanks, guys. Mark Masters. I'm Luke Wilson. Join me each week for Film Never Lies. Since retiring from the NFL, I've had a lot on my mind, and now I've got my own show. So if you're tired of lazy takes, if you want honest conversations, join us each week. Film Never Lies, available on all TSN platforms and the iHeartRadio app.