Exploring Every Notable Aspect of Auston Matthews Scoring 66 Goals
Auston Matthews has just reached 66 goals on the season, and not only is he miles ahead of the rest of the NHL, he as just added some new records to his already terrific career so far.
Earlier this week, the Toronto Maple Leafs took down the New Jersey Devils in a 5-2 victory. The team's win was highlighted by a two-goal game by Tyler Bertuzzi and Mark Giordano's third tally of the season.
Toronto Maple Leafs superstar Auston Matthews extended his goal lead on the rest of the league to thirteen goals, upping his total to a whopping 66 on the year.
Matthews is having a season for the ages, and has set totals that haven't been matched in almost 30 years.
With that being said, here's every notable aspect of Matthews' season so far.
Exploring Every Notable Aspect of Auston Matthews Scoring 66 Goals
1. Matthews Breaks Ovechkin's Record
With Auston Matthews reaching 66 goals, he has now broken Alex Ovechkin's personal record of 65 tucks in one season. Ovechkin is not only the greatest goal-scorer of the last 20 years, but potentially even of all time. There's a good chance "Ovi" passes Wayne Gretzky for the most goals scored in NHL history, but if Matthews can keep scoring like he has been (and stay healthy), maybe Matthews passes both of them at some point in the future.
2. Matthews Scores the Second Most Goals in the Past 30 Years
Auston Matthews' 66 goals is the second-highest amount since 1995-96, when Mario Lemieux scored 69 times. With four games remaining in the season, Matthews has a chance to match, or even surpass Lemieux's total.
3. Four Games to Score 70 Goals
With 66 goals on the season and four games remaining, Matthews needs to score at a goal-per-game pace if he wants to reach 70 tallies on the year. It's not out of reach for him, but it won't be easy. If he does reach the 70-goal plateau, he'll be the first player since the 1992-93 season, when both Alexander Mogilny and Teemu Selanne scored 76 times.
4. Most Multi-Goal Games in A Single Season Since 1992-93
Matthews has accumulated 17 multi-goal games this year (including six hat tricks), which is tied for the third-most in a single season since Alexander Mogilny's 24 multi-goal games in the 1992-93 season. Since 1990, Brett Hull has the record, with 26 multi-goal games in 1990-91. Matthews has four games to reach 18 multi-goal games on the season, which would give him sole possession for the third most since 1990.
In short, Auston Matthews has had a legendary season up to this point, and it's not over just yet. He has set numerous records already in his career, and has plenty of time of time to add to it.
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Let's hope he can add a Stanley Cup to his trophy case in the near future as well.