Toronto Maple Leafs captain Auston Matthews is earmarked to follow another fellow American’s lead. On Thursday night, Detroit Red Wings veteran Patrick Kane notched his 500th career goal. It was a remarkable achievement that firmly sealed Kane’s Hall of Fame case.
Kane is sixth on the all-time goal-scoring list for American-born players and is inching closer to Mike Modano for second place for all-time points by an American player.
That said, the next active player creeping up the list is Matthews. His record-breaking goal last weekend highlighted just how impressive Matthews’ career has been.
Entering Friday night’s action, Matthews is 25th on the all-time scoring list for American-born players. His 761 points are tied with Brian Rolston. With a strong second-half of the season, Matthews could leapfrog a former Leaf, Ed Olczyk, for 23rd on the all-time list.
Moreover, Matthews’ 422 goals are good for 11th all-time among Americans, and seven behind current Minnesota Wild GM Bill Guerin.
That’s a highly impressive situation when considering just how hard it is to be successful in the NHL. But beyond skill, climbing up all-time charts requires longevity. That’s what Kane has had. Despite the serious hip resurfacing surgery he underwent, Kane has managed to remain in the game.
There are no signs he’ll be slowing down any time soon. As such, Kane could ultimately catch Brett Hull for the all-time scoring lead among Americans.
Meanwhile, Matthews is nipping at everyone’s heels. Matthews is still just 28. Injuries aside, he’s been remarkably durable given the role he plays. Star players generally skate around with a target on their backs. Plus, Matthews plays a two-way role, one that opens the door to injuries.
With Matthews catching fire this season, he looks poised to have a solid rest of the season. If that momentum can translate into sustained success over a longer period, there’s no reason why we shouldn’t be talking about Matthews jumping into first place among American-born players.
Heck, Matthews has a shot at making serious headway on the all-time NHL scoring list. The Toronto Maple Leafs captain could retire as the top goal and point-scorer among American-born players when his career is said and done.
He’ll be talked about as one of the greats of his generation, including Nathan MacKinnon and Connor McDavid. Of the three, only MacKinnon has a Stanley Cup. That’s something Matthews needs to make this case ironclad as one of the NHL’s all-time greats.
Matthews would become a larger-than-life legend if he could hoist that Cup wearing the “C” on a Maple Leafs’ jersey.
Yes, it may seem like a far-fetched proposition at this point. But if there’s one thing I’ve learned in life is that things can change in a heartbeat.
That could be the case for Auston Matthews and the Maple Leafs. Things can change in the blink of an eye. Soon enough, perhaps not this season, Matthews can deliver on a promise that likely never crossed his mind when he was a kid playing hockey in Arizona.