MATTHEWS HOLDS WILD CARD
He’s only 18, but rookie could make impact at World Cup
Ask Peter Chiarelli what type of role he envisions Auston Matthews playing in the World Cup of Hockey and the Team North America GM said he doesn’t expect it to be a big one. After all, Matthews is only 18 years old. And he’s played zero games in the NHL.
Last season, it took Connor McDavid of the Edmonton Oilers a month before he figured out the league and felt comfortable. So it’s only fair to expect Matthews will experience a similar learning curve.
“That’s the instinct in my gut,” said Chiarelli.
Then again, Chiarelli has learned not to always trust his gut. It’s been wrong before.
When he was asked in March whether Matthews could make North America’s roster, his gut told him it would be an “uphill battle.” And then Matthews went to the world championship and tied for third in goals, all but forcing himself into the World Cup.
In other words, don’t bet against him. Especially when the stakes are raised.
“We went into the tournament saying, ‘Let’s see how he does.’ And it was just too hard to ignore. He played too well,” Chiarelli said of Matthews, who scored six goals and nine points in 10 games at the world tourney. “He had a hell of a tournament against world-class players.
“In that Canada game, he was arguably the best player on the ice.”
In some ways, the World Cup could become Matthews’ coming out party. At the very least, he will be making his Toronto debut after the Maple Leafs selected him with the No. 1 overall pick in this year’s draft. But just how big of a splash he makes will depend on how much he sees the ice.
While Team North America is obviously young and inexperienced, it is not lacking in top-end talent as the U.S. entry at the world championship. Calgary Flame Johnny Gaudreau tied for sixth in scoring with 78 points while Brandon Saad of the Columbus Blue Jackets reached the 30-goal mark. Stealing minutes away from them and the likes of McDavid, the Colorado Avalanche’s Nathan MacKinnon and Winnipeg Jet Mark Scheifele is not going to be easy, regardless of the hype surrounding the young centre.
“This is a best-on-best tournament, so it’s definitely going to be a big adjustment for myself,” Matthews said this week in Toronto, where he has been skating with the Leafs.
“It’s going to be a step up, but I’m ready. I’m definitely looking forward to it. Being a young guy, going in there you obviously have nerves. But as a hockey player, you want to go in there, work hard and earn your ice time and see where it goes.”
If there is a reason to believe Matthews can surprise some people, it’s that he has a track record for doing so. Like Finland’s Patrik Laine, who was selected second-overall by the Winnipeg Jets, Matthews has already excelled against older competition, having racked up 24 goals and 46 points in 36 games in the Swiss hockey league. Shortly after the season ended, he joined the U.S. team at the world championship, where he led the team in scoring.
“That was a big confidence boost for me,” said Matthews. “Going in there and playing against Canada twice, Czech, Finland, Russia — there were a lot of good NHL players, superstar players — and being able to compete hard and play pretty well, I really thought I gained a lot of confidence.”
“The first time I played against him was at the world championship and he was the best player for the U.S. team,” said Leafs defenceman Morgan Rielly.
“For me, it’s a no-brainer (that Matthews is on the team). He’ll be a huge part of this team.
“He’s one of those guys who’s going to go in there and surprise some people. For people that know him, that’s just what to expect from him.”
It’s one thing to play in the world championship, where there are weak teams and the best players are often playing in the Stanley Cup playoffs. It’s another to do so in the World Cup, an eight-team tournament where there are no minnows to beat up on.
“His competition is going to go up two-fold, because the countries’ best are going to be there,” said North America head coach Todd McLellan. “There will be a learning curve there. Everybody else on the ice has had the opportunity to play against Sidney Crosby and those types of players, so he’s going to feel that and experience that for the first time on the ice.”
Still, McLellan is not counting Matthews out just yet. Like Chiarelli, McLellan’s eyes were opened wide after seeing how mature the teenager’s game was at the world championship. And from coaching McDavid in Edmonton, McLellan is confident that young players can get up to speed awfully fast.