"They hate each other" "Leafs in 7" - NHL fans react as Mitch Marner and William Nylander share a laugh in practice after Bruins loss 

Amid playoff tension and a challenging series against the Boston Bruins, Toronto Maple Leafs stars Mitch Marner and William Nylander shared a moment of levity. The duo was caught exchanging a laugh during a recent practice session, which grabbed the attention of fans.

The Maple Leafs face a 3-1 deficit against the Bruins in the first round of the Stanley Cup playoffs. With one more loss leading to elimination, the pressure on the team and its players is high. But their smiles show they are not letting the tense situation stress them.

Sportsnet published Nylander and Marner's clip on X with the caption:

"All smiles on the bench at practice."

This post gained popularity, leading to comments and diverse views from NHL fans.

"This looks forced, they hate each other confirmed," a fan tweeted.

"Leafs in 7," one fan tweeted.

"they are laughing at how they fleeced MSLE, the entire cap structure and fooled leafs nation into believing they can win a cup," a fan tweeted.

Not all fans were critical of their smiles. Some appreciated Nylander and Marner's attitude and maintained their confidence in the Maple Leafs' chances.

"Think they don't know they're being filmed? Its on the Ice where you'll see the results of all that 'smiling'. #LeafsForever," a fan tweeted.

"Nice to see. They’re clearly competitors and need to have significant impact over the next game or 2 or 3. Need to mix up the lines and add some grit to every ‘skill’ line. Play some smash mouth hockey for once," a fan tweeted.

"All these negative posters will all jump aboard IF the leafs can bounce back," one fan tweeted.

Mitch Marner and William Nylander's performance in Game 4

Mitch Marner ended a five-game goal drought in their 3-1 loss to the Bruins in Game 4.

Across four playoff games, Marner has two points, seven shots on goal, six hits and a plus-1 rating, falling short of expectations for a core player. While he retains a top-six role, Toronto requires greater contributions from Marner to prolong its season beyond Game 5 on Tuesday.

William Nylander didn't score in Game 4 but registered 22 minutes and 24 seconds of ice time. In that span, he recorded three shots and two penalty minutes.