Auston Matthews
When it comes to Auston Matthews, there really shouldn’t be anything that comes as a surprise for the Leafs superstar. Like, is there really anything he can’t do to help the team to success?
But when he suddenly takes his game to even another level when you thought he was already on the top of his game, that’s what makes him even more surprising and more scarier that expected as a result.
In the Leafs recent winning streak, Matthews has gone absolute berserk in his scoring. He has 10 goals and 3 assists in just his past five games, and if we actually go all the way back to January 16th, he has a whopping 19 goals and 9 assists along with 65 shots on goal in just 15 total games played.
In doing so, he has finally surpassed William Nylander as the team leader in scoring, after Nylander being firmly on top of the team scoring list for practically the entire season.
At this rate, Matthews is putting up Connor McDavid-like crazy numbers, and now has the chance to actually challenge or likely obliterate Alex Ovechkin’s 21st century record of 65 goals in a single season, set back during the 2007-08 NHL season. (All stats from hockey-reference.com)
The way Matthews has been playing recently, full of confidence and will power all while controlling play, it really makes it feel like this year will be special for both himself and the Leafs as a whole. Hopefully his surprisingly “next-level”play can take the Leafs to their ultimate goal this year, which is getting a chance to play for the Stanley Cup when all is said and done.