BOSTON — Nick Robertson tugged on his New York Yankees hat and shook his head in disbelief as his mind drifted back to April 2019.
Five years ago, Robertson was preparing for the NHL Combine by working out with famed trainer and former NHLer Gary Roberts. And that meant an evening tradition the California-born Robertson was not used to: Watching the Toronto Maple Leafs play the Boston Bruins in the playoffs.
Robertson’s grin emerges when he recalls watching Mike “Doc” Emrick’s distinguishable voice calling the NBC feed of the seven-game series.
“It gave me goosebumps,” Robertson said.
The core players on that Leafs team are now his teammates, all trying to win their first series against the Bruins since 1959.
What Robertson saw then and what he knows needs to be present in the postseason is the “desperation” to win. Five years later, Robertson is ready to feel it for himself.
The Leafs’ Game 1 playoff lineup still technically remains unclear. William Nylander was a surprise absence from practice on Friday, with Bobby McMann also not participating as he nurses a lower-body injury. Coach Sheldon Keefe remained tight-lipped, only saying that both players remained “possibilities” for Game 1.
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But their absences meant there would be a surprise inclusion. After being on the playoff lineup bubble for most of the season as a young and emerging winger, Robertson now has an opportunity. The way Keefe rolled out his lines at practice suggested one thing in particular: By practicing on the third line with Pontus Holmberg and Calle Jarnkrok as well as one the second power play unit, Robertson would likely play in what he is viewing as his first official NHL playoff game. The 22-year-old wants to grab hold of his spot and not let it go.
“It’s a dream come true, to be honest,” Robertson said.
One year after watching that 2019 Leafs series, Robertson made his NHL debut in the qualifying round of the 2020 NHL playoffs. He scored one goal in four games without fans in the arena and has not played in the playoffs since, thanks to injuries and his game not being close to where it is today.
His first series against the Bruins in what will likely be a raucous TD Garden, will be much different.
“I’ll call this my first playoffs,” Robertson said. “The other one was a weird time in the world. These are my first playoffs.”
Even with the pressure surrounding him, the once high-strung Robertson, who couldn’t help but always play with his hair on fire, feels more at peace with his lot in life than ever before.
“When you’re all stressed and tight, the game seems different. But then when you relax, it’s like nothing else. So I think for me, I just noticed that I can play peacefully,” Robertson said.
After his season, it would be difficult to argue that Robertson isn’t deserving of a lineup spot. Consider the obstacles placed in front of him in 2023-24.
First and foremost: Could the left winger, who has battled serious injuries in every full professional season of his, actually stay healthy?
After 56 injury-free games this season, consider that a job well done for Robertson.
“To be healthy for the whole regular season, I’m very proud,” Robertson said. “I’ve said that if I had a full season where I was healthy, I’d play my best and get better as a player. Everything has progressed the way I wanted it to.”
Next, could he provide consistent offence, knowing that’s what he’s expected to bring as he learns to develop the other aspects of his game? Consider that when Robertson was very briefly loaned to the Toronto Marlies on March 2, that scoring was part of what Keefe wanted to see more of.
“The message to (Robertson) is that the league is hard,” Keefe said in March. “It’s hard to score consistently, so I think he’s learning that. When you’re not going to score, now your game has to be very well-rounded.”
Robertson didn’t play a game for the Marlies when he was loaned to the AHL. Perhaps not surprisingly, when he made his NHL return, he found the back of the net and ended up scoring six goals in 15 games to finish the season. In total, Robertson scored 14 goals in 56 games.
By staying in the lineup more consistently, he’s been able to produce consistently. And Robertson himself deserves credit for keeping discouragement at bay throughout his career, when he certainly didn’t always get the breaks he was hoping to.
“I just became more calm,” Robertson said of this season. “And now, there’s the challenge of staying calm under pressure because I’ve never experienced the playoffs.”
For a Leafs team that scored just two goals in each of their games against the Florida Panthers in the second round of the playoffs last season, Robertson has proved to have value in the lineup. Robertson might not have logged heavy TOI totals this season, but he’s shown he can do a lot with little time. Among all Leafs, his 1.33 5-on-5 goals per 60 minutes is second only to Auston Matthews.
Those positives have filled Robertson with confidence as he enters arguably the most important game of his NHL career.
“I’ve learned I can be a player in this league,” he said. “I think last year and the year prior, when you only get a handful of games and then you get scratched more and then you get hurt, you don’t really know what type of player you are and how to really break in the league. And this year for me, I just realized that I can use my shot. I can play with confidence. It’s just all mental.”
The answer to the final question for Robertson is still TBD: Could he indeed round out his game and show more defensive responsibility in his play? Because with his heavy shot, energy-first game and high-end offensive instincts have come turnovers and defensive miscues from time to time.
The playoffs present a different style of game. Robertson is aware of that.
He’s spent more time than earlier in the season working with Leafs assistant coach Guy Boucher after practices on his on-ice assignments. Playing alongside two creative but defensively-minded forwards in Holmberg and Jarnkrok should help ease the defensive burden for him, and also help get him in position to provide secondary scoring.
The more Robertson has played this season, the less concerned he feels about the questions about his game.
And so the Robertson that was a ball of nerves in 2020 is gone. With continued games as opposed to having to fight desperately for a lineup spot, he believes he can handle the pressure and the anticipation he saw in 2019.
It’s not often you get to live out your dreams, after all.
That’s why even when discussing the pressure ahead of him as the playoffs begin, the smile that was once vacant from Robertson’s face is now constant.
“It’s all execution,” Robertson said. “I don’t think it’s the placement factor. I think it’s more when you get the puck and you’re getting pressure from the (defence), especially Boston, just managing how to get out of that. Which is challenging, but I think I’ve gotten better over time, and more relaxed in those areas.”
(Photo: Claus Andersen / Getty Images)
