STOCKHOLM --William Nylander anticipates taking on additional responsibilities when the Toronto Maple Leafs visit Stockholm along with the Ottawa Senators, Detroit Red Wings and Minnesota Wild for the 2023 NHL Global Series Sweden presented by Fastenal on Nov. 16-19.
Stockholm is home for the Maple Leafs forward, so he'll serve as the host and tour guide for his teammates during the trip.
"That's usually how it goes," Nylander said at the NHL European Player Media Tour on Wednesday. "If we go to a city that somebody is from, you've got to take charge. So now I've got to take charge."
Each team will play two regular-season games at Avicii Arena in Stockholm. The Red Wings will play the Senators on Nov. 16 (2 p.m. ET) and the Maple Leafs on Nov. 17 (2 p.m. ET). The Wild will face the Senators on Nov. 18 (11 a.m. ET) and the Maple Leafs on Nov. 19 (8 a.m. ET).
But there will be time for some sightseeing and dinners. Red Wings defenseman Lucas Raymond, who is from Gothenburg, expects to play a similar role to Nylander for his team's social outings. That will be something different for the 21-year-old.
"I usually don't have to book a lot of dinner reservations; I let the other guys take care of that," Raymond said. "So it's going to be a lot of that, but for sure, I'm excited. Sweden is a beautiful country, I think Stockholm is a great city, so it will be a lot of fun showing the guys a little bit about Sweden and trying out some things, maybe."
Giving the NHL players the opportunity to experience Stockholm, including playing games there, is part of the appeal of the NHL Global Series, but it's also about giving the Swedish fans a chance to see the NHL game. Increasing to four teams and four games in the same city from two teams and two games each for the 2022 NHL Global Series games in the Czech Republic (San Jose Sharks and Nashville Predators) and Finland (Colorado Avalanche and Columbus Blue Jackets) also doubles the League's exposure for the event in Sweden.
"It's something we've done here regularly," NHL Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly said, "and we thought bringing four teams here instead of two and creating a festival type environment with four teams here would be interesting and compelling. So we're excited about that for a prospect for the upcoming season as well."
Daly noted the NHL has more players from Sweden than any country outside of North America (95 players born in Sweden played in the League last season), so it's an important market to sell the game.
"I think it's just huge for kids, especially," Nylander said. "They might see the players on Instagram or whatnot or NHL highlights, but to see an actual NHL game, I think, is a pretty cool experience. And for them to be able to see that here will be fun for them. You grow the game that way."
Getting to play in front of family and friends who are unable to travel to North America will add to the excitement for the Sweden-born players. Nylander said his grandmother, who has never attended an NHL game he played in, is among those planning to attend. It will be similar for Wild goalie Filip Gustavsson, who is from Skeleftea.
"A lot of Swedish don't watch the NHL too much because it's in the middle of the night because of the time change," Gustavsson said. "Being able to bring my family down here to Stockholm to watch me play, my grandparents have never seen me play live in the NHL, and uncles and that stuff, letting them to be able to come and see me is going to be very special to show what I can and play in the NHL."
Senators forward Tim Stutzle, who is from Germany, said he has 15 friends and family members planning to travel to Stockholm, including his grandparents, cousins and aunt. The 21-year-old never had the chance to see an NHL game live when he was a child, so he knows what that will mean to hockey fans here, especially younger ones, and conversely, the value it could have for the League.
"I think because soccer is so much bigger in Europe it's going to be good to kind of promote the best league in the world in Europe," Stutzle said. "The leagues are getting better every year here too, so it's going to be good for some fans to see the difference between those leagues and the NHL. I think every kid's dream is to watch an NHL game or play in the NHL one day."
NHL.com senior writer Dan Rosen contributed to this report
