A gripping new six-part docuseries spotlighting life in the NHL debuts Thursday October 4 on Amazon Prime Video. "Faceoff: Inside the NHL" peels back the curtain on the lives of the incredible athletes behind the goals, assists and saves.
Our Short Shifts team will recap each episode of the series, brining you our favorite moments and highlights from the show.
Episode 1: "Best of Rivals"
Players featured: William Nylander, David Pastrnak
Episode synopsis: Toronto Maple Leafs forward William Nylander and Boston Bruins forward David Pastrnak were best friends playing junior hockey in Europe. And now they are on opposite sides of not just one of the most heated rivalries in the NHL, but in all of sports.
Funniest moment: Nylander said he and Pastrnak had so much on-ice chemistry in juniors that it didn't matter that they couldn't speak to each other. "We couldn't talk to each other because he couldn't speak English, I couldn't speak Czech," Nylander said. "But we had this amazing chemistry on the ice."
Moving moments: Pastrnak lost his father at 17 years old and said he spent so much more time at the junior practice rink with Nylander, who made sure he didn't mourn alone. Later in the episode while running errands with his daughter, Freya, he reflected on the tragic loss of his son Viggo in June of 2021, who was just six days old. "We lost our first born son, his name is Viggo and he was only six days old. We have been through some hard times in our life," an emotional Pastrak said. "We are blessed for every single day in this world with Freya and her being healthy. For sure it changed our life... You mature real quick when something like that happens in your life... I started recognizing so much more than hockey."
Quotable: Nylander talking about his experience in the hockey-matters-most culture of Toronto. "I came in here, I was 18 years old. It has taught me a lot. I mean I have become a man in Toronto. It's made me who I am. To have that, you're battling even harder than you were before."
This is Hockey Life: After Toronto battled back in amazing fashion to tie the Eastern Conference First Round series with the Bruins at 3-3 behind Nylander's two goals, he had a moment on the ride home. "What's happened in the past doesn't actually matter. It comes down to this one game," Nylander said moments after Game 6. "I couldn't tell you if I feel any (particular) way, I'm obviously happy that we battled back and made it 3-3 but the next game is the one."
Hockey Players, They're Just Like Us: Nylander had to walk his dogs after his monster Game 6. "That's why I love the dogs because you know, you come home, you had a big game, but it's time to take them out for a walk and that's all they care about," Nylander laughed. "It's a nice little reset coming home. They don't care if you played like s---, they don't care if you played unbelievable, they're just happy to see you."
