Auston Matthews is arguably the best Maple Leaf of the 21st century. Over his decade with the Leafs, he has racked up 428 goals and 352 assists for 780 points. He has been a staple of the top six ever since he entered the league back in 2016. Without Matthews, the Leafs would not have the regular-season success they have had over the last few seasons. However, that is part of the issue. While Matthews has given them regular-season success, he has yet to lead them on a deep playoff run. This is something that is making Leafs fans impatient and adding pressure to him.
Auston Matthews needs a deep playoff run to secure his legacy
The Leafs have made the playoffs in nine of Matthews ten seasons. They have won the division twice and consistently finish in the top three of the Atlantic Division. But most of the time, the Leafs are a quick exit. They have never made it past the second round and have lost in the first round of the playoffs seven times. With how talented those teams are, constantly falling short like this is a major problem. The Leafs should have a dynasty, not just two playoff series wins.
Matthews has also not been as dominant in these playoff series as he was in the regular season. In some of these series, Matthews is a ghost and does not drive the offense like he used to. Sure this was more a trend early in his career, but it has helped him gain the reputation that he can't handle the grind of the playoffs. While this has applied to most of the team, when you are the face of the franchise, a lot of the criticism will come your way.
This is a stain on Matthews legacy. Sure, we can talk about all the goals he has scored and all the good regular-season moments he has. But the first thing everyone will bring up is his shortcomings in the playoffs. This is just how sports fans work. Regular-season accomplishments cannot overcome playoff failures. It will always be, "Yeah, he was a good player, but could never get it done when the lights were brightest." It prevents people from truly appreciating how good they were.
With Matthews contract up at the end of the 2027-28 season, he needs to put in a deep playoff run to show the Leafs he's still the player worth building around. With Gavin McKenna here, the Leafs could be at a crossroads in a couple of seasons. If they continue to struggle and come up short in the playoffs, they could look to shake things up and make McKenna the face of the Leafs. Without that deep playoff run, Matthews future in Toronto could be up in the air.
There is a lot of pressure on Matthews to lead the Leafs on a deep playoff runs in the next few seasons. It could be the difference between him being a Leaf for life and playing somewhere else in a few seasons.
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