HEIR JORDAN HOPES TO FIT
Young Subban aims to crack Canucks
He hasn’t even played an NHL game yet, but Auston Matthews is about to debut on one of the most prominent lines in the World Cup of Hockey.
The promising Toronto Maple Leafs prospect and No. 1 overall pick in the 2016 NHL entry draft will make his Air Canada Centre debut on Sunday on a line with Edmonton Oilers star, Connor McDavid and Mark Scheifele of the Winnipeg Jets.
As if just being in the lineup wasn’t enough excitement for his new hockey hometown, the development continued an incredible ascent for the 18-year-old Arizona native and second youngest player in this tournament.
For Toronto hockey fans looking for a glimpse into the future of the storied, rebuilding franchise, it only adds to the anticipation of Sunday night’s contest between Matthews and Team North America against Team Finland.
The two were first paired together for Friday’s practice at the Ricoh Coliseum, home of the Leafs AHL minor-league affiliate Marlies. With Matthews’ versatility and McDavid’s speed and skill, for however long it lasts, it will be a treat to watch, the top pick in the NHL draft from the past two years joined on a line.
“He’s a great player, otherwise he wouldn’t have been picked first overall,” McDavid said. “He’s proven over the last few games that he’s for real and that he can help me play at his level. I’m definitely excited about this. We’ll see how it goes.”
Team North America coach Todd McLellan has been a strong supporter of Matthews since the World Cup training camps began. And given his familiarity with McDavid, whom he coaches with the Edmonton Oilers, McLellan is playing more than a hunch.
“We’re going to find out,” McLellan said on Friday. “Watching Auston, he’s played with different players. He’s played on the left side, the middle, even played on the right side a little. Every time he goes on the ice, he seems to be able to adapt to people around him and complement him.
“I don’t think he’ll have a problem with Connor at all. He’s been one of our most responsible forwards as well on the defensive side of the puck. I don’t have a problem giving him those minutes up front and playing him with Connor.”
Matthews, who will shift dressing rooms at the ACC once the World Cup concludes, has certainly been impressive in all areas, including his quiet confidence to respond to new assignments. And now with the opportunity to play with McDavid and Scheifele, Matthews gets yet another opportunity to excel.
“I like it,” Matthews said. “Connor’s a special player, so to be able to play with him and Scheifele out there, I think we can definitely do some damage.”
Matthews took note of comments Canada’s Patrice Bergeron made about being on the same line as Sidney Crosby. And the young winger hopes he can apply it to his role playing with McDavid.
“(McDavid) thinks the game extremely fast,” Matthews said. “He makes quick, fast decisions, kind of like what Bergeron said about Sid. You kind of give him his space and let him do his thing.”
THOROUGHBRED POWER
It’s a luxurious problem any NHL coach will like to have, though not necessarily for an entire season. We’ll let McLellan explain. “With an NHL team, there isn’t 20 guys standing up and putting their leg over the board every power play,” McLellan said. “Here, they’re all on the ice and you’ve got to put 15 of them back on the players’ bench.
“I think this team would be great to coach short-term. Long-term, if this was your team during the year, we’d really be excited about the prospects of having all the talent. But I think we’d run into a lot of road blocks along the way because of the limited ice time, and they’re thoroughbreds. They want to run, they want to get going and some of them don’t get out of the gate because the coach holds them back.”
QUICK HITS
The earliest it can happen is the semifinals of the World Cup, but Team North America (and Leafs) defenceman Morgan Rielly would like a crack at Team Canada. “I’d really like to beat their coach,” Rielly quipped ... Nathan MacKinnon skipped Friday’s practice to attend a funeral but is expected back for Sunday’s tournament opener for the young guns ... To his credit, McLellan isn’t trying to sell his young team as something they aren’t.
“Our team is going to play with some risk,” the coach said. “It’s fun to watch them do that. But can we limit it in certain areas of the ice and at certain times of the game to allow us to have success?”