The Toronto Maple Leafs greatest forward of all-time is getting zero respect (insert Rodney Dangerfield meme here) right now, but expect that to change after the 2025-26 season.
Auston Matthews had the worst goal-scoring season of his career last year, finishing with 33 goals and 78 points. Imagine playing nine seasons in the NHL and 33 goals was your worst season? You have to be so consistent and talented for that to happen, and that's exactly what the Scottsdale, Arizona native is.
As mentioned off the top, Matthews is the best player in the history of the Leafs, and I won't really take anyone serious who says otherwise. In 629 games, he already has 401 career goals and is going to pass Mats Sundin for the all-time goal record this year. Once his career is set and done, I'd expect him to pass Sundin for the all-time points record too.
The reason why the current captain is the best player who's ever dawned the Blue and White is because he's already a three-time Rocket Richard Trophy winner and a Hart Trophy winner. There is no other player in franchise history that can say that and we are all lucky as fans to get to witness him nightly. Not only that, but he's one of the best two-way forwards in the league who can steal a puck away at any given moment from the opposition's best.
When you look back on the 2024-25 season, there was a lot of pressure on Matthews to perform. During the offseason, he was named captain, taking it away from his current teammate John Tavares, which is awkward. By all accounts, they're friends and the transition looked seamless but that's a hard position for anyone, even if it's deserving. Not only that, but he was clearly injured, as he missed 15 games, highlighted by his strange trip to Germany.
I'm not 100 percent sure that Matthews is completely healthy, but after another long offseason, I'm going to assume that he's ready to go. The last time he was healthy, he scored 69 goals and registered a career high 107 points, so even if he scores 19 less goals next year, he'll compete for not only another Rocket trophy but a Hart Trophy as well.
Matthews will compete for his second Hart Trophy this year
Obviously he's going to miss Mitch Marner on his wing this year, but I think that'll drive the 27-year-old more. The media is going to kick and scream if Matthews struggles without Marner, so he knows he needs to get off to a hot start, and I think he will. In addition to Marner's abscense, the NHL recently had a ranking that listed Matthews as the No. 7 centre in the NHL.
There are some good players ahead of him (Connor McDavid, Nathan MacKinnon, Leon Draisaitl, Alexander Barkov, Sidney Crosby and Jack Eichel), but that's such disrepect. I'm never going to put Matthews ahead of McDavid, but how in the world are Eichel, Barkov and Crosby ahead of him right now?
Sure, those three players all have Stanley Cup rings, but if Matthews was on either Pittsburgh, Vegas or Florida during their championship run's, I think those franchises still would have won. At this current stage for the 2025-26, there's no way that those three centres are better than Matthews and I think that's going to motivate him even more.
The 2025-26 season is set to get underway soon and all we can hope for is a healthy Matthews and if he's 100 percent, I expect him to be a Hart Trophy candidate at season's end.