News Article: Auston Matthews - August 1st., Contract Crickets

[Gabriel426]

That's the million dollar question. And the answer probably costs us 14 million dollars x 4 years. My gut tells me that Matthews does not have it in his DNA to put the club on his back and lead us to the Cup, no.

But since the team is built on a wonky foundation, it's impossible to tell. The thing is, I'm torn on both Matthews the player and Matthews the person. His career PPG and GP82 in the playoffs is pitiful compared to his regular season production and contract, so his ability to elevate to the occasion as a player must be in question. That is a fact.

And his me-first attitude when it comes to his contract demands speaks to his character and priorities, if I'm being honest. How are you supposed to be the leader of a franchise when you leverage the organization for personal gain without prioritizing team success even a little? That tells me Matthews is more concerned with being "the highest paid" than "fairly paid" while placing his team in a no-win situation.

So, do I think that type of person can lead us to a Cup? Honestly, no chance. His cap hit will make it virtually impossible, even if he scores 65 goals a year in the regular season.

I could not said it better myself.
And that goes to MM, Willie and JT too.

To me, the only hope I am still hanging on to is the Mack route. Where Avs literally rebuild their core and betted on Mack and Landy. Landy still play the same way but Mack took a huge step forward after ROR and Duchnese are traded. But Mack trained with Sid, who does AM, MM, Willie and JT trained with over the summer?

Nope, complimentary piece just like Kessel was

I agree until proven otherwise and I will gladly eat crows when that happens.

 

[Racer88]

I could not said it better myself.
And that goes to MM, Willie and JT too.

To me, the only hope I am still hanging on to is the Mack route. Where Avs literally rebuild their core and betted on Mack and Landy. Landy still play the same way but Mack took a huge step forward after ROR and Duchnese are traded. But Mack trained with Sid, who does AM, MM, Willie and JT trained with over the summer?


I agree until proven otherwise and I will gladly eat crows when that happens.

I will gladly share that crow with you if need be

 

[Gabriel426]

Well I'm sure it hurts Florida that the Conn Smythe winner was a guy they didn't protect in the expansion draft but I don't know that you can blame the league for that.

Not just didn't protect, Panthers literally begged Vegas to take him with adding picks.

 

[Racer88]

I could not said it better myself.
And that goes to MM, Willie and JT too.

To me, the only hope I am still hanging on to is the Mack route. Where Avs literally rebuild their core and betted on Mack and Landy. Landy still play the same way but Mack took a huge step forward after ROR and Duchnese are traded. But Mack trained with Sid, who does AM, MM, Willie and JT trained with over the summer?


I agree until proven otherwise and I will gladly eat crows when that happens.

I think Mathews trains with the King……..the Burger King in the off season

 

[Gabriel426]

I will gladly share that crow with you if need be

Watch some here will tell us to eat crows when he scored 60 goals or make it past the 1st round, lol.

 

[seanlinden]

Yes, we do. But that all hinges on Matthews. There's not a player on Vegas who makes more than 10 million, we have three. And if Matthews insists on making 13.5 to 14.5 a pop forget about building a championship caliber team around him. If the Oilers can't do it with McDavid and Draisaitl (the two greatest players on the planet) then the Leafs have no shot.

Does swapping Marner out for Dougie Hamilton get the Leafs closer to a Cup? Nope, not in my opinion. Or swapping Nylander for Jones and taking on additional 3 mil of salary? Nah.

In order for the Leafs to be a legit contender, they need:

1. Tavares to wave his NTC (won't happen).

2. Matthews to do us a solid and agree to a long-term deal for 12.6 mil/yr. (won't happen).

3. Swap flashy, soft perimeter players for some gamers like Tkachuk, Marchessault, Bennett, etc. (possibly, with Dubas gone).

I know I'm in the minority but I'm literally at the breaking point where I firmly believe either Matthews resets the tone and signs long-term for under 13 mil cap hit, or we need to trade him for an absolute haul and remake what this club is all about. If not, we're just delaying the inevitable and rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic until Matthews walks in a year, 3 years, or 5 years.

All of that said, I still don't want Eichel. The way we're built, swap Matthews out for Eichel and we still choke in the playoffs but with a more unlikeable player on the roster.

Call me crazy.... but I agree with you.

You look at the Tavares/Marner matching contract terms, and I think there's a way forward that you can remain a contender, maybe even win with Tavares making $11m.... if not, certainly an opportunity in the immediate year after.

But... I don't believe that can be true if the culture of "needing to set the new high water mark" doesn't get completely expunged from this team. Matthews either needs to set an example, or be the example of what's going to happen to you. Him & Marner are too close in value for Marner to be able to grasp the concept of taking substantially less than Matthews. Some will argue, that Marner is better.

It's unfortunate.... in a perfect world you'd probably want Marner (and/or Tavares) to the be the guys that set the example, as the Leafs are quite thin at centre behind him, but there's no way Marner's going to leave money on the table when Matthews doesn't.


You look at this Vegas team, and you can argue lots about the "type" of players they had... but the reality is, they were deeper, somewhat plain and simple. You need to be deep to win in the playoffs.

They played 22 games. They had:
- 9 players with a minimum of 11 points (1/2 ppg)
- Michael Amadio who had 10 points in 16 games
- Brett Howden & Alex Pietrangelo, who had 10 points in 22 and 21 games.

That's a total of 12 guys, who were at, or pretty close to, 1/2 PPG.

Toronto played 11 games. They had:
- 6 Players with a minimum of 5 points.
- Matthew Knies who had 4 points in 7 games.

That's a total of 7 guys who were at, or pretty close to, 1/2 PPG.

The next highest scorer on the team had 3 points (a bunch of them). Prorate that out to the 22 games vegas played, that would rank 15th on the Knights.

The Leafs "bottom 6" has been a revolving door of largely irrelevance for quite a few years now.... full of passengers. While it's hard to blame the Big 4 for that, the reality is, that bottom 6 is irrelevant because of how much the big 4 make.

 

[Boxscore]

To me, the only hope I am still hanging on to is the Mack route. Where Avs literally rebuild their core and betted on Mack and Landy. Landy still play the same way but Mack took a huge step forward after ROR and Duchnese are traded. But Mack trained with Sid, who does AM, MM, Willie and JT trained with over the summer?

This is the thing. Let's compare Matthews to MacKinnon for a second, the whole package:

Both entered the league with massive amounts of promise and expectations. MacKinnon had to work through some growing pains while Matthews came out of the gate guns blazing.

After some underwhelming seasons in Colorado, the Avs bailed on Duchene and hitched their wagon to MacKinnon. Ironically, Duchene is the type of player the Leafs are loaded with -- flashy, offensive, finesse players who are more sizzle than steak when it counts. The Avs recognized this and flipped Duchene for a haul and handed MacKinnon the keys.

As for MacKinnon -- he's cut from the Sid mold, where he eats, sleeps, and breathes hockey, and constantly challenges himself to be the greatest player he can be. To be honest, I've never seen that with Matthews.

MacKinnon is clean cut, all business, and has become obsessed with improving his game and winning. He also left money on the table twice so the Avs core could stay together. He was even quoted publicly saying, "I'll take less again next time."

Then, after being bounced a couple years in a row in the playoffs, MacKinnon unleashed his frustrations post game with his famous, "I haven't won s--t" quote during the presser. He followed this up by getting in top shape and challenging his teammates to cut out sugar and get strict with their diets. The following year his team wins a Cup.

Now, compare that to Matthews:

Auston enters the league and dominates early. He's a young kid who is full of life and displays a motor just like MacKinnon. He gets into the playoffs as a pup and helps the Leafs scratch, claw, and surprise the hockey world by battling the Caps as a huge underdog.

But once the Leafs started throwing around money and handed the keys to Dubas, I sensed a change in Matthews as well. He changed from that high-energy, fun loving, clean cut kid who seemed to focus primarily on hockey into a slightly cartoonish version of himself. He loaded himself up with tats, grew a silly looking mustache, started wearing odd clothing, and acted more like Patrik Laine than Nate MacKinnon.

After numerous playoff disappointments, Matthews seemed to be more focused on following Bieber around, and campaigning with his teammates to remove the dress code, than he did working on his game and challenging said teammates. In this regard, he has been the anti-MacKinnon to date.

Now, here we are again. More playoff disappointments and Matthews is ready to negotiate his next deal. Will he man up and act like MacKinnon or continue acting like a spoiled superstar who expects to be given everything he asks for without meeting team expectations?

The way I see it, we can complain about the Tavares contract all we like, or how Marner and Nylander are overrated or overpaid, but our success ultimately comes down to Matthews. And if he's not capable of elevating his game in the playoffs, or interested in taking less money to commit the Leafs, then he needs to be evaluated more critically.

 

[geo25]

Yes, we do. But that all hinges on Matthews. There's not a player on Vegas who makes more than 10 million, we have three. And if Matthews insists on making 13.5 to 14.5 a pop forget about building a championship caliber team around him. If the Oilers can't do it with McDavid and Draisaitl (the two greatest players on the planet) then the Leafs have no shot.

Does swapping Marner out for Dougie Hamilton get the Leafs closer to a Cup? Nope, not in my opinion. Or swapping Nylander for Jones and taking on additional 3 mil of salary? Nah.

In order for the Leafs to be a legit contender, they need:

1. Tavares to wave his NTC (won't happen).

2. Matthews to do us a solid and agree to a long-term deal for 12.6 mil/yr. (won't happen).

3. Swap flashy, soft perimeter players for some gamers like Tkachuk, Marchessault, Bennett, etc. (possibly, with Dubas gone).

I know I'm in the minority but I'm literally at the breaking point where I firmly believe either Matthews resets the tone and signs long-term for under 13 mil cap hit, or we need to trade him for an absolute haul and remake what this club is all about. If not, we're just delaying the inevitable and rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic until Matthews walks in a year, 3 years, or 5 years.

All of that said, I still don't want Eichel. The way we're built, swap Matthews out for Eichel and we still choke in the playoffs but with a more unlikeable player on the roster.

Agreed!

 

[geo25]

This is the thing. Let's compare Matthews to MacKinnon for a second, the whole package:

Both entered the league with massive amounts of promise and expectations. MacKinnon had to work through some growing pains while Matthews came out of the gate guns blazing.

After some underwhelming seasons in Colorado, the Avs bailed on Duchene and hitched their wagon to MacKinnon. Ironically, Duchene is the type of player the Leafs are loaded with -- flashy, offensive, finesse players who are more sizzle than steak when it counts. The Avs recognized this and flipped Duchene for a haul and handed MacKinnon the keys.

As for MacKinnon -- he's cut from the Sid mold, where he eats, sleeps, and breathes hockey, and constantly challenges himself to be the greatest player he can be. To be honest, I've never seen that with Matthews.

MacKinnon is clean cut, all business, and has become obsessed with improving his game and winning. He also left money on the table twice so the Avs core could stay together. He was even quoted publicly saying, "I'll take less again next time."

Then, after being bounced a couple years in a row in the playoffs, MacKinnon unleashed his frustrations post game with his famous, "I haven't won s--t" quote during the presser. He followed this up by getting in top shape and challenging his teammates to cut out sugar and get strict with their diets. The following year his team wins a Cup.

Now, compare that to Matthews:

Auston enters the league and dominates early. He's a young kid who is full of life and displays a motor just like MacKinnon. He gets into the playoffs as a pup and helps the Leafs scratch, claw, and surprise the hockey world by battling the Caps as a huge underdog.

But once the Leafs started throwing around money and handed the keys to Dubas, I sensed a change in Matthews as well. He changed from that high-energy, fun loving, clean cut kid who seemed to focus primarily on hockey into a slightly cartoonish version of himself. He loaded himself up with tats, grew a silly looking mustache, started wearing odd clothing, and acted more like Patrik Laine than Nate MacKinnon.

After numerous playoff disappointments, Matthews seemed to be more focused on following Bieber around, and campaigning with his teammates to remove the dress code, than he did working on his game and challenging said teammates. In this regard, he has been the anti-MacKinnon to date.

Now, here we are again. More playoff disappointments and Matthews is ready to negotiate his next deal. Will he man up and act like MacKinnon or continue acting like a spoiled superstar who expects to be given everything he asks for without meeting team expectations?

The way I see it, we can complain about the Tavares contract all we like, or how Marner and Nylander are overrated or overpaid, but our success ultimately comes down to Matthews. And if he's not capable of elevating his game in the playoffs, or interested in taking less money to commit the Leafs, then he needs to be evaluated more critically.

Many good comments. Now is the time to trade him imho..
.we may never get another chance.

 

[seanlinden]

The way I see it, we can complain about the Tavares contract all we like, or how Marner and Nylander are overrated or overpaid, but our success ultimately comes down to Matthews. And if he's not capable of elevating his game in the playoffs, or interested in taking less money to commit the Leafs, then he needs to be evaluated more critically.

I'd also add... that when Tavares was signing his deal, he was apparently leaving a fair bit of money on the table to do it. He was a UFA, signing in a period of prosperity for the league.

Matthews contract started a year after McDavid's. After just 1.5 years in the league, McDavid had an Art Ross and Hart Trophy to his name. Matthews had become an instant PPG player scoring at around a 40 goal pace.

He got $900k less on an AAV.

If the years contracted were equal (so as to achieve balance with respect to cap %).... you could probably argue that if McDavid makes $12.5m, Matthews should make $11.5m.....

But, Matthews had to give up 3 less UFA years than McDavid did to get that deal, and has his contract expiring 2 years before McDavid. Had the cap gone up as anticipated, Matthews would have made an exorbinant amount more than McDavid over a 7 or 8 year period of the contract... and that's not really "right" if you want to win.

 

[Boxscore]

I'd also add... that when Tavares was signing his deal, he was apparently leaving a fair bit of money on the table to do it. He was a UFA, signing in a period of prosperity for the league.

Matthews contract started a year after McDavid's. After just 1.5 years in the league, McDavid had an Art Ross and Hart Trophy to his name. Matthews had become an instant PPG player scoring at around a 40 goal pace.

He got $900k less on an AAV.

If the years contracted were equal (so as to achieve balance with respect to cap %).... you could probably argue that if McDavid makes $12.5m, Matthews should make $11.5m.....

But, Matthews had to give up 3 less UFA years than McDavid did to get that deal, and has his contract expiring 2 years before McDavid. Had the cap gone up as anticipated, Matthews would have made an exorbinant amount more than McDavid over a 7 or 8 year period of the contract... and that's not really "right" if you want to win.

The only thing I still strongly disagree with is this notion that Tavares left money on the table to play in Toronto. I mean, did he literally leave money on the table? Sure, considering the Islanders were willing to overpay to keep him from walking for nothing in return. As for the comedy act known as the Sharks -- they were so desperate for talent, after offering Tavares more than McDavid and missing out, they severely overpaid for Erik Karlsson, who was coming off injuries.

Regardless of what the hapless Isles and deranged Sharks were willing to pay for Tavares, the Leafs willingly gave him the second largest cap hit in the league behind McDavid. This was ludicrous for a guy who had a career high of 86 points and never won a thing in the NHL. It was especially ludicrous the following summer when Nikita Kucherov re-upped with Bolts for a 9.5 mil cap hit after winning the Hart and scoring 126 points.

To make matters worse, the Tavares contract set the precedent for the young Leafs. It's virtually impossible to convince your young, in-house talent to take less for the good of the team when you just gave an outsider (not named Crosby or Ovechkin) the second largest cap hit in the NHL. Then you bypass your loyal soldiers who were drafted as Leafs and stitched the "C" on his chest.

I'm convinced that persuading Tavares to "come home" and sign for say 9.5 (like Kucherov did) would have set all the dominos in place to secure team-friendly deals with the pups. If he signs for 9.5 then it's easier to get Willy to agree to a 6.25 deal without practically losing a year. If Matthews wants 11.5, you have ammunition to say, "Come on, we just signed a top UFA for 9.5. If Tavares was willing to sacrifice some coin to be a Leaf, how about you? We can make you the highest paid on the team at 10 mil but let's take a bit less and we'll get you some more players so we can win a Cup together." Then, once Matthews takes 10 or so, there's zero chance Marner holds out for 11 million. He likely settles for a hair below Tavares at 9, which was fair for him.

If you add up those savings, we're talking 6+ million of cap flexibility to surround the core with better depth pieces to make some runs. And what would it really have cost those players? Tavares would still be making Kucherov money and M&M would both be making more than Leon Draisaitl. In fact, Marner would have just about signed for then what Matt Tkachuk just signed for last summer. All of those contracts were outlandish then, and more so now, and they all started with the Tavares deal.

 

[Arzak]

Or the league could just give us 10 million more to use like Vegas.

Why? As it stands we'll just spread it between our core, never to improve.

Give us 20 mill and will line up the same team.

 

[613Leafer]

The only thing I still strongly disagree with is this notion that Tavares left money on the table to play in Toronto.

The last article that I saw that broke down endorsements showed Tavares making over $2M a year in endorsements in Toronto, whereas guys like Kucherov, Panarin, Stamkos, etc were making <$500K in their markets (despite all being bigger stars).

In San Jose or NYI, he'd be making <$500K in endorsements. That alone makes up the difference, not to mention he'll be able to keep raking in Toronto endorsement money for years after retirement.

Everyone talks about the benefits of taxes, but no one factors in the endorsement money available here. I forget who, but on a podcast someone said in other markets, the top star player might get a free car as an endorsement, here even the 4th liners can get that.

 

[ToneDog]

I looked up McDavid and he does. Guessing a few more will but not too many.

Checkout Pastrnak's bonuses on an 8 year deal. 26.5m vs 54m on shorter deals than 16 and 34. 16 and 34 got around $30m in the first two years. Pasta gets 8.5m. Which bonuses do you take if you are a player ??

 

[mydnyte]

Nope, complimentary piece just like Kessel was

no NHL team has ever won a Cup with 1 player ...this isnt the NBA where a LeBron can win a series on his own, and even he needed high end complimentary pieces on offense AND defense to win.

we only have a good offence; our defense has been rubbish for well over a decade, and is only serviceable at best.
i'm no spiring chicken, and I cannot remember the last time the Leafs had an intimidating defender, forget an intimidating defense.
The last one we ever drafted that fit that build was Gary Nylund, and injuries did him in.

 

[mydnyte]

Yes, we do. But that all hinges on Matthews. There's not a player on Vegas who makes more than 10 million, we have three. And if Matthews insists on making 13.5 to 14.5 a pop forget about building a championship caliber team around him. If the Oilers can't do it with McDavid and Draisaitl (the two greatest players on the planet) then the Leafs have no shot.

Does swapping Marner out for Dougie Hamilton get the Leafs closer to a Cup? Nope, not in my opinion. Or swapping Nylander for Jones and taking on additional 3 mil of salary? Nah.

In order for the Leafs to be a legit contender, they need:

1. Tavares to wave his NTC (won't happen).

2. Matthews to do us a solid and agree to a long-term deal for 12.6 mil/yr. (won't happen).

3. Swap flashy, soft perimeter players for some gamers like Tkachuk, Marchessault, Bennett, etc. (possibly, with Dubas gone).

I know I'm in the minority but I'm literally at the breaking point where I firmly believe either Matthews resets the tone and signs long-term for under 13 mil cap hit, or we need to trade him for an absolute haul and remake what this club is all about. If not, we're just delaying the inevitable and rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic until Matthews walks in a year, 3 years, or 5 years.

All of that said, I still don't want Eichel. The way we're built, swap Matthews out for Eichel and we still choke in the playoffs but with a more unlikeable player on the roster.

I think the biggest decision Matthews has if does he sign for Max term, or does he sign to the end of the CBA?
His agent very well may want to go the latter, and hope the new CBA gives him the chance to make more $$ or extends contracts, or there is some change/update that is beneficial to his client
But, if his agent thinks there will be a lockout, he may look for a longer term, and way more front loaded to be lockout safe.
but, if you use Mathematics, Matthews is 26 at the end of his current deal +8 is 34 yrs old, and may want to keep playing but that would make it hard to sign another big $$ contract, however, if he signs a 2-3 year deal, he'll be resigning with a higher Cap, and in his actual prime years taking him to 36-37 where his career would/should be winding down and any new contract he signs will only be of he wants to keep playing. (ala Spezza)

 

[robertmac43]

But Mack trained with Sid, who does AM, MM, Willie and JT trained with over the summer?

AM34 trains with McDavid in the summer. Decent player.

 

[mydnyte]

Call me crazy.... but I agree with you.

You look at the Tavares/Marner matching contract terms, and I think there's a way forward that you can remain a contender, maybe even win with Tavares making $11m.... if not, certainly an opportunity in the immediate year after.

But... I don't believe that can be true if the culture of "needing to set the new high water mark" doesn't get completely expunged from this team. Matthews either needs to set an example, or be the example of what's going to happen to you. Him & Marner are too close in value for Marner to be able to grasp the concept of taking substantially less than Matthews. Some will argue, that Marner is better.

It's unfortunate.... in a perfect world you'd probably want Marner (and/or Tavares) to the be the guys that set the example, as the Leafs are quite thin at centre behind him, but there's no way Marner's going to leave money on the table when Matthews doesn't.


You look at this Vegas team, and you can argue lots about the "type" of players they had... but the reality is, they were deeper, somewhat plain and simple. You need to be deep to win in the playoffs.

They played 22 games. They had:
- 9 players with a minimum of 11 points (1/2 ppg)
- Michael Amadio who had 10 points in 16 games
- Brett Howden & Alex Pietrangelo, who had 10 points in 22 and 21 games.

That's a total of 12 guys, who were at, or pretty close to, 1/2 PPG.

Toronto played 11 games. They had:
- 6 Players with a minimum of 5 points.
- Matthew Knies who had 4 points in 7 games.

That's a total of 7 guys who were at, or pretty close to, 1/2 PPG.

The next highest scorer on the team had 3 points (a bunch of them). Prorate that out to the 22 games vegas played, that would rank 15th on the Knights.

The Leafs "bottom 6" has been a revolving door of largely irrelevance for quite a few years now.... full of passengers. While it's hard to blame the Big 4 for that, the reality is, that bottom 6 is irrelevant because of how much the big 4 make.

having Marner and JT expire the same year was strategy... 11 mil comes off the books, and that is a very good UFA class, and McD is UFA the following year (if he doesnt re-up)

but the UFA class includes Drais, Shesterkin, Rantanen, Hedman, Slavin, Theodore, Ekblad, Provorov
I imagine a few will make it to UFA status, and 11 million off the books, is a better head start than most teams will have available.

 

[Sypher04]

This is the thing. Let's compare Matthews to MacKinnon for a second, the whole package:

Both entered the league with massive amounts of promise and expectations. MacKinnon had to work through some growing pains while Matthews came out of the gate guns blazing.

After some underwhelming seasons in Colorado, the Avs bailed on Duchene and hitched their wagon to MacKinnon. Ironically, Duchene is the type of player the Leafs are loaded with -- flashy, offensive, finesse players who are more sizzle than steak when it counts. The Avs recognized this and flipped Duchene for a haul and handed MacKinnon the keys.

As for MacKinnon -- he's cut from the Sid mold, where he eats, sleeps, and breathes hockey, and constantly challenges himself to be the greatest player he can be. To be honest, I've never seen that with Matthews.

MacKinnon is clean cut, all business, and has become obsessed with improving his game and winning. He also left money on the table twice so the Avs core could stay together. He was even quoted publicly saying, "I'll take less again next time."

Then, after being bounced a couple years in a row in the playoffs, MacKinnon unleashed his frustrations post game with his famous, "I haven't won s--t" quote during the presser. He followed this up by getting in top shape and challenging his teammates to cut out sugar and get strict with their diets. The following year his team wins a Cup.

Now, compare that to Matthews:

Auston enters the league and dominates early. He's a young kid who is full of life and displays a motor just like MacKinnon. He gets into the playoffs as a pup and helps the Leafs scratch, claw, and surprise the hockey world by battling the Caps as a huge underdog.

But once the Leafs started throwing around money and handed the keys to Dubas, I sensed a change in Matthews as well. He changed from that high-energy, fun loving, clean cut kid who seemed to focus primarily on hockey into a slightly cartoonish version of himself. He loaded himself up with tats, grew a silly looking mustache, started wearing odd clothing, and acted more like Patrik Laine than Nate MacKinnon.

After numerous playoff disappointments, Matthews seemed to be more focused on following Bieber around, and campaigning with his teammates to remove the dress code, than he did working on his game and challenging said teammates. In this regard, he has been the anti-MacKinnon to date.

Now, here we are again. More playoff disappointments and Matthews is ready to negotiate his next deal. Will he man up and act like MacKinnon or continue acting like a spoiled superstar who expects to be given everything he asks for without meeting team expectations?

The way I see it, we can complain about the Tavares contract all we like, or how Marner and Nylander are overrated or overpaid, but our success ultimately comes down to Matthews. And if he's not capable of elevating his game in the playoffs, or interested in taking less money to commit the Leafs, then he needs to be evaluated more critically.

Some of this comparison is fair commentary and some is not really either.

1) the fact that Matthews grew a mustache, got tattoo’d and has an active social life enjoying some of the perks of his stardom doesn’t in any way mean he doesn’t take his job and improving year over year very very seriously. Players are capable of doing both, and we could cite many instances of off-season work mentioned during broadcasts that Matthews took part it. As for the stuff you pointed to and almost becoming a cartoonish very of himself, I don’t see him that way, but even if we accept that, he was always going to grow into and show more of his personality as he cemented his place in the team/the league. As for challenging teammates, not all stars are vocal leaders, but we ultimately have no idea what his presence in the room is like.

2) MacKinnon didn’t leave money on the table on his first contract post ELC at all. He got as much as he possibly could given he really wasn’t a very effective player at that point in time. As for his most current deal, I’m not sure how much props we should be trying to give a guy for leaving money on the table when he’s the top paid player in the NHL (albeit probably briefly). Like if Matthews turns around and signs his extension with us at 12.7M, some will call it leaving money on the table I guess, but he’d still be the highest paid player in the league so not sure how meaningful it is. Given the stupid numbers people are throwing around with no basis at all, maybe 12.7M would be, but to me MacKinnon signed at around value and so will Matthews. Saying I’ll take less again, when you never did the first time, and then signing for the highest amount in NHL history isn’t signing for less. Plain and simple.

 

[Nineteen67]

The amount of work they have to do to become a playoff contender that can win 8 to 10 games is going to take time and money.
Therefore they must explain the plan to Matthews and put some dollars beside the spots in the roster that need upgrading.
Assuming there were no majors injuries that affected playoff performance it‘ll take 30+ million to build a team that can win two or more rounds.
If they do it properly and stabilize the roster, they’ll have JT’s money in two years if they’re in a position to win, they can go for it, if not keep building.
If he’s on board, you sign him, if not trade him.

 

[Canadian Finn]

"explain the plan" to Matthews.
Matthews doesn't give the slightest shit about any plan.
He's ONLY in it for the money.

Nothing else.

 

[SprDaVE]

Seravalli mentioned the plan was for Treliving to meet with Matthews yesterday in Arizona. So perhaps some traction was made there.

He also said there's urgency from the Leafs to lock up Matthews as soon as July 1st hits but that there is less urgency from Matthews to do so, so there will be a clash a bit depending which way it goes.

 

[Sypher04]

Seravalli mentioned the plan was for Treliving to meet with Matthews yesterday in Arizona. So perhaps some traction was made there.

He also said there's urgency from the Leafs to lock up Matthews as soon as July 1st hits but that there is less urgency from Matthews to do so, so there will be a clash a bit depending which way it goes.

While logical, safe to assume that’s just his opinion being interjected. Matthews’ bubble of people aware of his intentions and wants and timelines is probably no bigger than 5-6 maybe and none of them are talking to Seravalli

 

[Sypher04]

That's the million dollar question. And the answer probably costs us 14 million dollars x 4 years. My gut tells me that Matthews does not have it in his DNA to put the club on his back and lead us to the Cup, no.

But since the team is built on a wonky foundation, it's impossible to tell. The thing is, I'm torn on both Matthews the player and Matthews the person. His career PPG and GP82 in the playoffs is pitiful compared to his regular season production and contract, so his ability to elevate to the occasion as a player must be in question. That is a fact.

And his me-first attitude when it comes to his contract demands speaks to his character and priorities, if I'm being honest. How are you supposed to be the leader of a franchise when you leverage the organization for personal gain without prioritizing team success even a little? That tells me Matthews is more concerned with being "the highest paid" than "fairly paid" while placing his team in a no-win situation.

So, do I think that type of person can lead us to a Cup? Honestly, no chance. His cap hit will make it virtually impossible, even if he scores 65 goals a year in the regular season.

Certainly a lot of people these days acting like they know what makes Matthews tick. We don’t.

A player who only cares about being paid doesn’t doesn’t win the rocket, hart and Ted Lindsay all in the same season, after the previous season also winning the rocket and being a finalist for the other two. There is clearly a lot more drive to perform and be the best there than people are willing to acknowledge.

Also why are we just assuming 25 year old Matthews, even if he was previously all about the money, views things the same way as he did at 21 after experiencing the last 4 years. That he’s not grown as a person and seen his priorities shift.

We honestly have no idea what his cap will be; no one who would actually be willing to share it with us does

 

[SprDaVE]

While logical, safe to assume that’s just his opinion being interjected. Matthews’ bubble of people aware of his intentions and wants and timelines is probably no bigger than 5-6 maybe and none of them are talking to Seravalli

Maybe? But we've heard from many different people that echo the same sentiment. There doesn't really seem to be urgency from their camp to extend or really verbally agree to a contract for July 1st.

It's pretty clear Matthews will very likely to re-sign based on everything. The bigger problem is the contract and how it looks like.