Sky is the limit for Matthews after 40-goal rookie season
Could Auston Matthews fire 50 goals this season?
It is something worth pondering. With the new rules governing slashing, and the openings they could create for offence, players like Matthews conceivably will have more time and more room to make plays.
On the eve of the Leafs’ home opener against the Rangers, the talk was about goals and the heights Matthews and Edmonton’s Connor McDavid, the new titans of the game, could reach. The latter, Calgary’s Jaromir Jagr suggested, might score100. And Matthews, who had 40 as a rookie, could be a lock for 50.
Right or wrong, the talk about the sky being the limit for the Leafs’ superstar centre is there. Matthews certainly has the maturity and mental discipline to keep the talk from being a distraction to himself and his teammates.
He recently said he has goals for himself, but wouldn’t delve into what they are.
Instead, Matthews sees all the ripening talk of exploding offence this season as the product of some recent developments of which he was a part.
One was last year’s World Cup of Hockey, where he starred with McDavid and a host of other youngsters on the North American under-23 roster.
“A big part of it is all the skill and talent in the league,” Matthews said, referring to how members of that World Cup team, and other teenage stars, have entered the league not only prepared for the NHL level but prepared to star in it.
“Guys are elevating their games, they’re working hard and they’re ready to play. But its early in the season right now . . . the first 10-20 games, teams are figuring out the way they want to play. So, in time, you won’t see 10-goal games like you’re seeing now (as in the Blackhawks’ win over Pittsburgh on Thursday).
“Things are loose now, but it will tighten up. Teams will start checking harder, for sure.”
The other development seemed more fantasy than reality: Matthews, like almost every player of his generation, has grown up in the digital age. And those players regularly tapped into YouTube to witness the 50-goal exploits of still-active players like Alex Ovechkin and the “golden goals” from Sidney Crosby.
The dream, of playing in the NHL and mimicking their YouTube favourites, was once a distant goal; now there’s a chance to connect the dream and reality.
“I used to watch videos of all the (star players),” Matthews said Friday. “I watched when I was young, and now young kids probably watch that stuff even more than I did.
“You saw it and you tried to translate it into your game. But it’s tough to make it on talent alone. You also see the best players in the league and their work ethic . . . they are defensively responsible too.”
That equation offence is often re- peated by the Leafs: Good defence means you have the puck more on offence.
It was reflected in Matthews’ rookie season when 32 of his 40 goals came at even strength. It was the most by a teenager in recent NHL history.
His teammates have no problem discussing the “sky is the limit” talk surrounding their centre.
“You don’t put limits on a guy like Auston,” linemate Zach Hyman said. “We’ve only played one game, so there’s a lot of work to do, and you take it one game at a time, and don’t get ahead of yourself.
“But it was clutching and grabbing, they changed the rules there, and now it’s slashing, and that all helps a guy who can really skate, like Auston. He likes to have the puck and now there may be more time for him to have it and make more plays.”