Player Discussion Auston Matthews (Captain Edition)

[sunstersun]

I mentioned this last year when we signed him, but I was concerned at his wrists and hand injuries affecting his shot. Of course then he put up a 60 goal season again so it went away.

 

[Stephen]

I mentioned this last year when we signed him, but I was concerned at his wrists and hand injuries affecting his shot. Of course then he put up a 60 goal season again so it went away.

The way Matthews chose to go short term on the new contract would lead me to believe there's nothing wrong with his wrists or hands... there would be inherent belief he could keep producing at a high rate and cash in than locking into an 8 year deal.

He just looks very inconsistent with his effort level this season. Presses for offense and not rewarded, lazy on his feet away from the puck, looking to stick check and swing at things a la Kessel than do the hard work and just close the body. Shift to shift you have no idea what his effort level will be.

 

[thusk]

The way Matthews chose to go short term on the new contract would lead me to believe there's nothing wrong with his wrists or hands... there would be inherent belief he could keep producing at a high rate and cash in than locking into an 8 year deal.

He just looks very inconsistent with his effort level this season. Presses for offense and not rewarded, lazy on his feet away from the puck, looking to stick check and swing at things a la Kessel than do the hard work and just close the body. Shift to shift you have no idea what his effort level will be.

Or he just put himself too much pressure by holding the C this season. Result he's thinking too much unstead of just working and keep it simple

 

[therealkoho]

Matthews is a big part of the locker room issues or the overall issues the team has. Matthews does not show up consistently. He appears more and more like an arrogant person who just wants to be worshipped and praised. 13.25 million is alot more important to Matthews than winning in the playoffs. What happened to him last year in the playoffs when he missed 2 games and wouldnt explain why. What happened to being 6-3 225 in the playoffs but refuses to separate man from puck, his goal scoring prowess that disappears in the playoffs.

He once said that his goal is to be the highest paid in the league!

Not win a scoring championship
Not win a Hart or Rocket or the Messier
Not win the Connie
Not win a SC

Just be the highest paid.

And even after him saying that lots of folks still calling for him to be made Captain. People blaming everybody else, Marner especially! I've been saying for years they need to trade this guy, yeah he can score goals but he doesn't do anything else, when it's the anything that matters, to his teammates, his team and to the fanbase. The fan base pays his salary, by paying 500 bucks for a seat to a Tuesday night game in mid January, so don't say he doesnt owe them anything.

 

[HellasLEAF]

It's renowned around the Leafs org that Matthews is the hardest worker on the team and the most dedicated. This is why they made him captain.

He has 3 top goal scorer awards and a hart trophy and is on route to be the greatest ever Maple Leaf. To Leaf fans grew up through the 80's to have this player is almost unthinkable.

He is top 5 in FOW's and #1 in shots on goal this year. Last night he stood up for teammate Mitch Marner getting clocked by the net with a hard check and penalty.

I don't see a player 'regressing'. What a joke. Many in here way too emotional over these reg season games right now. Unless you are watching the scoresheet only. Those stats can be largely pointed to a sputtering PP which should correct itself. I'm sure as the Leafs get more and more familiar with Berube system the offence will start to come. I think there are certain posters in here laughable with their takes (cough Stephen cough).

 

[Dough72]

Or he just put himself too much pressure by holding the C this season. Result he's thinking too much unstead of just working and keep it simple

pretty sure that's what happens to him in the playoffs too. Probably Marner and Nylander as well. You see athletes like this across all the major sports. I think we just got unlucky and got 3 of them.

 

[hamzarocks]

It's renowned around the Leafs org that Matthews is the hardest worker on the team and the most dedicated. This is why they made him captain.

He has 3 top goal scorer awards and a hart trophy and is on route to be the greatest ever Maple Leaf. To Leaf fans grew up through the 80's to have this player is almost unthinkable.

He is top 5 in FOW's and #1 in shots on goal this year. Last night he stood up for teammate Mitch Marner getting clocked by the net with a hard check and penalty.

I don't see a player 'regressing'. What a joke. Many in here way too emotional over these reg season games right now. Unless you are watching the scoresheet only. Those stats can be largely pointed to a sputtering PP which should correct itself. I'm sure as the Leafs get more and more familiar with Berube system the offence will start to come. I think there are certain posters in here laughable with their takes (cough Stephen cough).

Naw Stephen's takes are 100% correct

Matthews has been terrible and has failed to perform anywhere near his worth.

All/most of the other league wide superatars get paid a crap ton, dominate the reg season and have good to legendary playoffs.

Matthews needs to produce. Sub ppg in the modern NHL is just terrible.

He needs to be hitting, blocking shots, standing for his teammates on top of 120+ pt production and 90 pt playoff production to be worth his absurd 13.25M AAV

 

[Dough72]

It's renowned around the Leafs org that Matthews is the hardest worker on the team and the most dedicated. This is why they made him captain.

He has 3 top goal scorer awards and a hart trophy and is on route to be the greatest ever Maple Leaf. To Leaf fans grew up through the 80's to have this player is almost unthinkable.

He is top 5 in FOW's and #1 in shots on goal this year. Last night he stood up for teammate Mitch Marner getting clocked by the net with a hard check and penalty.

I don't see a player 'regressing'. What a joke. Many in here way too emotional over these reg season games right now. Unless you are watching the scoresheet only. Those stats can be largely pointed to a sputtering PP which should correct itself. I'm sure as the Leafs get more and more familiar with Berube system the offence will start to come. I think there are certain posters in here laughable with their takes (cough Stephen cough).

if it bugs you just be patient. Matthews (and Marner) making people look bad is the most easy to predict thing ever. At least until the playoffs. .

 

[HellasLEAF]

Naw Stephen's takes are 100% correct

Matthews has been terrible and has failed to perform anywhere near his worth.

All/most of the other league wide superatars get paid a crap ton, dominate the reg season and have good to legendary playoffs.

Matthews needs to produce. Sub ppg in the modern NHL is just terrible.

He needs to be hitting, blocking shots, standing for his teammates on top of 120+ pt production and 90 pt playoff production to be worth his absurd 13.25M AAV

He is top 5 for blocked shots all centres too.

 

[hamzarocks]

He is top 5 for blocked shots all centres too.

Irrelevant

Put 120 pts + that other stuff and then we can talk

 

[Stephen]

It's renowned around the Leafs org that Matthews is the hardest worker on the team and the most dedicated. This is why they made him captain.

He has 3 top goal scorer awards and a hart trophy and is on route to be the greatest ever Maple Leaf. To Leaf fans grew up through the 80's to have this player is almost unthinkable.

He is top 5 in FOW's and #1 in shots on goal this year. Last night he stood up for teammate Mitch Marner getting clocked by the net with a hard check and penalty.

I don't see a player 'regressing'. What a joke. Many in here way too emotional over these reg season games right now. Unless you are watching the scoresheet only. Those stats can be largely pointed to a sputtering PP which should correct itself. I'm sure as the Leafs get more and more familiar with Berube system the offence will start to come. I think there are certain posters in here laughable with their takes (cough Stephen cough).

Matthews is the highest paid player in the game and is 75th on NHL.com in scoring. He’s the hardest worker on the team yet the team looks inconsistent and rudderless in the leadership department giving you a dogs breakfast of effort every night of the week. Does he look like a top 2-3 player in the game, do the Leafs look like they have consistent leadership?

Whipping boy Marner has produced more than him. Matthew Knies has more goals than him on the same line. We are more than a month into the season. On his own team he is lagging behind.

Falling back on former accomplishments and shot blocking is frankly a losers race. Matthews has steadily fallen behind in the conversation among the games great despite goal scoring totals and his big game presence has been appalling. The gap between him and McDavid is unbridgeable at this point and guys like Mackinnon and Draisaitl have built serious playoff resumes and continue to be automatic producers.

The idea that the PP is sputtering and it’s responsible for his lagging stats is a joke. He’s failing to do his job on the PP and that’s why the PP stinks.

Yes, standing up for Marner was great. When that and a EN bank shot is the highlight of your week though that’s a sign that things aren’t going well.

Standards should be higher and we should all be disappointed in what he’s managed to do in 2024-25. Not good enough. And frankly if your game is going into the tank like this because you have the captaincy, you’re not ready to be a captain. Pretty sure no one in the organization itself is going to say it. But be better.

 

[Gilmour1996]

I don't see a player 'regressing'. What a joke.

Not sure what you're taliking about since you haven't quoted anybody, but the league has LOTS of players who have regressed. Due to injuries, different line mates, personal issues away from the rink, trades to different teams, age, focusing more on defensive responsibilities instead of offensive stats, personal issues with the coach, trouble adapting to new systems and many other reasons. Are you sure some of the Leafs are immune to any of these factors that can cause dips in their play?

 

[HellasLEAF]

Matthews is the highest paid player in the game and is 75th on NHL.com in scoring. He’s the hardest worker on the team yet the team looks inconsistent and rudderless in the leadership department giving you a dogs breakfast of effort every night of the week. Does he look like a top 2-3 player in the game, do the Leafs look like they have consistent leadership?

Whipping boy Marner has produced more than him. Matthew Knies has more goals than him on the same line. We are more than a month into the season. On his own team he is lagging behind.

Falling back on former accomplishments and shot blocking is frankly a losers race. Matthews has steadily fallen behind in the conversation among the games great despite goal scoring totals and his big game presence has been appalling. The gap between him and McDavid is unbridgeable at this point and guys like Mackinnon and Draisaitl have built serious playoff resumes and continue to be automatic producers.

The idea that the PP is sputtering and it’s responsible for his lagging stats is a joke. He’s failing to do his job on the PP and that’s why the PP stinks.

Yes, standing up for Marner was great. When that and a EN bank shot is the highlight of your week though that’s a sign that things aren’t going well.

Standards should be higher and we should all be disappointed in what he’s managed to do in 2024-25. Not good enough. And frankly if your game is going into the tank like this because you have the captaincy, you’re not ready to be a captain. Pretty sure no one in the organization itself is going to say it. But be better.

^^ Well I agree he does need to be more productive, and he needs to be better, sure. I wouldn't disagree with that. He has a high standard. I'm just disagreeing with takes like 'terrible' and 'horrible'. The general vibe extremely over the top negative. Sheesh. I think it's early and short-sighted that kind of talk but to each their own we'll just see.

 

[therealkoho]

It's renowned around the Leafs org that Matthews is the hardest worker on the team and the most dedicated. This is why they made him captain.

As a guy who's been retired for close to 6 years, and also a voracious reader of anything Leaf and someone who has been a Leaf freak for over 60 years. This is my first time hearing this.

 

[HellasLEAF]

As a guy who's been retired for close to 6 years, and also a voracious reader of anything Leaf and someone who has been a Leaf freak for over 60 years. This is my first time hearing this.

Not 'voracious' enough I suppose.

 

[therealkoho]

Not 'voracious' enough I suppose.

I guess I just need a richer fantasy life, or at least a better imagination.

 

[HellasLEAF]

Or you're just wrong and uninformed.

 

[therealkoho]

But imagine how many fans bought a new 34 jersey just for the "C" on it!


34 for McD straight up.

Hmmm I'm pretty sure McD would waive not to sure the other guy would.

 

[Stephen]

^^ Well I agree he does need to be more productive, and he needs to be better, sure. I wouldn't disagree with that. He has a high standard. I'm just disagreeing with takes like 'terrible' and 'horrible'. The general vibe extremely over the top negative. Sheesh. I think it's early and short-sighted that kind of talk but to each their own we'll just see.

From what I recall, Matthews game has taken a dip since he hit 69 goals and stalled in the Detroit game when he crashed into the end boards looking for the 70th.

The last 2 regular season games were a bit of a shit show trying to score the one goal. He was good in 1 of the Bruins playoff games and struggled/MIA for the rest of the series and has been ice cold and sloppy in 2025.

Going back 19 games, he only has 6 goals for a 25 goal pace over 82. If that's not regression, I'd be interested to hear your definition.

 

[therealkoho]

From what I recall, Matthews game has taken a dip since he hit 69 goals and stalled in the Detroit game when he crashed into the end boards looking for the 70th.

The last 2 regular season games were a bit of a shit show trying to score the one goal. He was good in 1 of the Bruins playoff games and struggled/MIA for the rest of the series and has been ice cold and sloppy in 2025.

Going back 19 games, he only has 6 goals for a 25 goal pace over 82. If that's not regression, I'd be interested to hear your definition.

The bolded is probably the reason he's internationally maybe universally renowned for being the most dedicated and hard working Leaf. Which I've learned quite recently btw!

 

[ACC1224]

As a guy who's been retired for close to 6 years, and also a voracious reader of anything Leaf and someone who has been a Leaf freak for over 60 years. This is my first time hearing this.

I’m sure it’s the first time many have heard that.

 

[Stephen]

Irrelevant

Put 120 pts + that other stuff and then we can talk

Yep. Elite level production needs to be a stable constant at that price tag. There’s no way you can be the 75th highest scorer over the course of a month and justify highest paid player in the game.

 

[TonsofPuppies]

Matthews is the highest paid player in the game and is 75th on NHL.com in scoring. He’s the hardest worker on the team yet the team looks inconsistent and rudderless in the leadership department giving you a dogs breakfast of effort every night of the week. Does he look like a top 2-3 player in the game, do the Leafs look like they have consistent leadership?

Whipping boy Marner has produced more than him. Matthew Knies has more goals than him on the same line. We are more than a month into the season. On his own team he is lagging behind.

Falling back on former accomplishments and shot blocking is frankly a losers race. Matthews has steadily fallen behind in the conversation among the games great despite goal scoring totals and his big game presence has been appalling. The gap between him and McDavid is unbridgeable at this point and guys like Mackinnon and Draisaitl have built serious playoff resumes and continue to be automatic producers.

The idea that the PP is sputtering and it’s responsible for his lagging stats is a joke. He’s failing to do his job on the PP and that’s why the PP stinks.

Yes, standing up for Marner was great. When that and a EN bank shot is the highlight of your week though that’s a sign that things aren’t going well.

Standards should be higher and we should all be disappointed in what he’s managed to do in 2024-25. Not good enough. And frankly if your game is going into the tank like this because you have the captaincy, you’re not ready to be a captain. Pretty sure no one in the organization itself is going to say it. But be better.

Bang on. As I've been saying for a long time, the amount of slack that this guy gets just because he's the "best" player on the team is a joke. His offensive output is unacceptable for a player of his stature + salary and even worse is his give-a-shit level on a nightly basis. It's not hard to see why this guy, despite his generational ability to score goals, has never won a goddamn thing in his career.

Go read the Leafs subreddit at the moment, specifically the thread about having the "Matthews conversation" and look at the vitriol the OP gets for merely suggesting that he is earning some deserved criticism for his play this season. There are large swaths of this fanbase who frankly deserve this piece of shit organization.

 

[hamzarocks]

Bang on. As I've been saying for a long time, the amount of slack that this guy gets just because he's the "best" player on the team is a joke. His offensive output is unacceptable for a player of his stature + salary and even worse is his give-a-shit level on a nightly basis. It's not hard to see why this guy, despite his generational ability to score goals, has never won a goddamn thing in his career.

Go read the Leafs subreddit at the moment, specifically the thread about having the "Matthews conversation" and look at the vitriol the OP gets for merely suggesting that he is earning some deserved criticism for his play this season. There are large swaths of this fanbase who frankly deserve this piece of shit organization.

R/Leafs, subreddit is basically if every poster there was two-three certain dubas/core fanboys all the time

The leafs subreddit is one of the worse places to discuss hockey.

Hfboards has some crazy posters but overall pretty good source of knowledge and rational discussion

 

[TonsofPuppies]

R/Leafs, subreddit is basically if every poster here was two-three certain dubas/core fanboys all the time

The leafs subreddit is one of the worse places to discuss hockey.

Hfboards has some crazy posters but overall pretty good source of knowledge and rational discussion

Funny thing is that even the Dubler was ready to move on from this core and it cost him his job. Lmao