Matthews makes his worlds statement
Expected No. 1 pick from the U.S. matches Finnish star Laine with pair of goals, assist against Belarus
ST. PETERSBURG, RUSSIA — The battle to be the best is starting to heat up.
Auston Matthews went without a point in his first game at the World Hockey Championship. But after Patrik Laine scored two goals and an assist in a 6-2 win against Belarus on Friday night, Matthews answered back with an identical two goals and an assist in a 6-3 win against Belarus on Saturday.
“I think it’s important,” Matthews said of scoring. “You definitely gain a lot of confidence from it. It was a nice team effort tonight, scoring six goals as a whole. It’s pretty tough to lose when you do that.”
The top two prospects heading into this June’s NHL draft play each other on Monday.
That game won’t decide who gets selected by the Toronto Maple Leafs, who hold the No. 1 pick. And neither will their play in this tournament. But that probably won’t stop fans, scouts and NHL team general managers from comparing and contrasting the two teenage forwards.
“I don’t think anybody has their mind’s made up yet,” said Columbus Blue Jackets GM Jarmo Kekalainen, whose team has the No. 3 pick in the draft. “You have this tournament and then the (draft) combine ... I can’t speak for the other teams, but I know that we have a lot of homework to do.”
So far, both players have been impressive. While Laine’s one-timer was on display against Belarus, Matthews used an accurate wrist shot for both his goals on Saturday.
Taking a pass from Winnipeg Jets prospect Kyle Connor at the side of the net, Matthews found the top of the net with a shot that rang in off the crossbar. He scored his second after taking a pass in the slot and using a quick release to beat the Belarusian goaltender.
“He’s got a whole 200-foot game and he can score at will,” Connor said of Matthews. “You saw that tonight.”
While Matthews steered away talk of trying to outdo Laine, the Finnish winger said it was important for him to have a strong tournament.
“I think it’s a good start for me and the whole team played pretty well,” Laine said of his play against Belarus. “It’s good to continue from that game. I want to (shrink the gap) from the first pick, so it’s important to have success in this tournament so that everyone knows I can play at this level with these NHL guys.”