Grading Toronto Maple Leaf Forwards
Auston Matthews Grade: A++
This one is as expected right?
It was not hard to assign a grade to the guy who led the NHL by miles in goals scored and will finish with votes for the Hart Trophy and Selke Trophy.
Although Matthews was not able to get the 70th goal he was chasing, he set the record for the most scored in a single season in the salary cap era, breaking Alex Ovechkin's record of 65 goals set in 2005-06.
Matthews dominated both ends of the ice this season; dominant, you can't debate that fact either. Being one of the best players in the NHL this season, I am not going to go too deep into this grade as it feels self-explanatory. I will save some words for the more controversial grades I will hand out.
You would have liked to see Matthews do better in the playoffs, but he is excused because of health reasons.
Mitch Marner Grade: A
There is always a lot of garbage spewed about Mitch Marner during the playoffs, but there is no denying this guy is a top-tier player in the NHL. During the regular season, Marner missed some time due to an ankle injury, but he still finished the year with 85 points and was on pace for 101 points if he had.
Sure Marner could look to shoot and score more often, but once again Marner led this team in primary assists, which is huge considering a lot of hockey fans have put more weight into primary assists rather than goals scored when trying to discredit Matthews Hart Trophy chances.
Marner impacts the game in so many ways. He is excellent on the defensive end, phenomenal on the powerplay and penalty kill, and has some of the best vision in the NHL. I refuse to believe that the Maple Leafs could trade Mitch Marner and find equal value in return, as some people have suggested.