Matthews doesn’t expect to be Leafs’ saviour

But Babcock realizes team ‘got a lot better’ with the No. 1 pick in the draft

BUFFALO— With top pick Auston Matthews now in the fold, the Toronto Maple Leafs believe they are doormats no longer.

To the surprise of no one, and to the delight of thousands of Toronto fans in attendance, the Maple Leafs called out Matthews’ name as the first overall pick in the 2016 NHL draft.

“Obviously, we got a lot better,” gleeful coach Mike Babcock said Friday night. “Lou (Lamoriello) is a better general manager, I’m a better coach, and the team’s way better.”

The source of the glee is Matthews, an American hockey prodigy — born in California, raised in Arizona, played in Switzerland — who became the face of a historic franchise heading into its 100th season and trying to return to its former glory.

“He’s an elite player with an elite drive train,” Babcock said. “A bigbodied guy who makes players better. I mean, we’re going to have to look after him. He’s a kid . . . that’s our job. But he’s going to make us better, and he’ll develop into a top, top centre in the National Hockey League.”

Matthews believes he can handle the pressure cooker of Toronto.

“It’s going to be an adjustment for sure, but it’s something that I feel that I can handle well and, over time, obviously, get better and better at it,” he said. “I know everybody there is extremely passionate. They obviously love the Leafs. It’s a great sports town with the Blue Jays, the Raptors. “Everybody has told me when they’re winning it’s the best place in the league. That’s definitely something that I’m looking forward to.”

Matthews joins a core of young budding stars, including William Nylander and Mitch Marner, whose responsibility will be to take the team out of the basement and into the penthouse suites of the NHL. It won’t be easy, and they won’t do it alone.

“Hockey’s a team game, so there’s really no saviour,” said Matthews. “I want to be an impact player. I believe I can be a franchise centreman, a No. 1centreman in the NHL, so that’s my ultimate goal.”

Matthews did not state any personal goals for his rookie year, just a team one: “I just want to win as much as possible. It’s going to be a learning curve, the NHL is the best league in the world, so yeah, I definitely want to win a lot, soak in as much as possible, and try to get better and better each day.”

That competitive spirit, from wanting the puck on the ice to his training regimen, is part of what drew the Leafs to Matthews in the first place.

“That’s one of the things that jumps out about him right away, how competitive he is, and how bad he wants to win,” said Babcock, who got to know Matthews when he coached in Detroit. Babcock also watched Matthews closely at the world championship.

“He didn’t take a back seat to any- body,” said Babcock. “It was nice that Connor McDavid was there, got to watch him and watch this guy. You get a good benchmark.”

Matthews is the just the second No. 1 pick in the team’s history since the introduction of the universal draft.

“My heart was beating when I was walking up there. Very nerve-wracking,” he said. “But once they called my name it was definitely a sigh of relief. A lot of excitement. My family went up there with me, and it was a pretty unbelievable feeling.” Babcock suggested Matthews would be the third-line centre behind Tyler Bozak and Nazem Kadri. Ultimately, that could mean that Nylander — who played centre for the Marlies and the Leafs all year — could move the wing.

“Auston Matthews coming is just going to help Willie be a better player,” Babcock said. “They’re going to compete. Willie is a good player. It’s nice to have lots of good players, and see who’s the best player.”

Matthews is the first American to go first overall since Chicago took Patrick Kane in 2007, and the Leafs’ first No.1 since Wendell Clark in1985.

“I think it’s a great time for a young pick,” Clark said. “Everyone knows he’s talented. That’s a given. His job is to come in and be a great teammate, be part of a team that wants to win . . . And don’t try to worry about anything outside the room.”