Player Discussion Auston Matthews (Captain Edition)

[ponder]

When he’s at his best in the regular season, he’s damn good, but when it counts in the playoffs, he’s SO consistently invisible. Can’t have your $13.25 mil franchise centre turn into a $4 mil player when the games really, really matter, and this is exactly what he does, every time.

His 6th career game 7. Lost every one, 0 goals, 3 assists, -4, always invisible. It is an absolute stone cold guarantee that Matthews will not show up when you need him most, and if that’s your franchise player, you’re f***ed in the playoffs.

 

[Willchel Marlynder]

He's the head of the snake on the player side. People seem to forget that Marner was signed after Tavares, Nylander, and Matthews. Everyone got overpaid, so why wouldn't Marner?

Matthews and JT Yes (Although he was a UFA). That Nylander deal was far from an overpayment.

Signing JT sunk the organization. Yeah he's good and puts up points, but like the rest of the core, he becomes a dud in the big moments. We should have built a winner more methodically. That would have allowed us to bring in some decent depth over time to surround the core so that when they go ice cold (which we see is in their veins, especially Matty and Mitch) you can hopefully get some help from decent depth pieces. The lorentzs' and Jarnkroks' re only good for energy, you can't rely on guys like that for production.

 

[seventieslord]

Look, I know this is hearsay/rumors and it very well may get deleted. I wasn't even going to share it (I've been sitting on this for over 48 hours) but since the passengers comment I feel it merits being aired in here. My cousin has an uncle, unrelated to me, who went to game 6 in Florida, and ended up in the same hotel as them. Spent a lot of time bumping shoulders with them. Here's what he said...

Stayed at the same hotel. Said the team seems like they hate matthews and marner. The entire team stayed away from them. When he talked to matthews, he said he has the hugest ego. Said rielly was respectful and professional. But matthews spent the entire time on the beach yesterday. And the team avoided him like the plague. While talking to some guys he got the vibe they just can't stand him. Like when he spoke guys rolled their eyes and shit.

 

[ponder]

Matthews and JT Yes (Although he was a UFA). That Nylander deal was far from an overpayment.

Signing JT sunk the organization. Yeah he's good and puts up points, but like the rest of the core, he becomes a dud in the big moments. We should have built a winner more methodically. That would have allowed us to bring in some decent depth over time to surround the core so that when they go ice cold (which we see is in their veins, especially Matty and Mitch) you can hopefully get some help from decent depth pieces. The lorentzs' and Jarnkroks' re only good for energy, you can't rely on guys like that for production.

The bigger problem is that JT, Matthews and Marner ALL shrink in big games. “If we had great depth, they could carry our invisible stars in games 5-7” is missing the bigger issue, which is the stars turning invisible in games 5-7.

Watching the careers of guys like McDavid, Crosby, Geno, Ovie, Draisaitl, MacKinnon, Kucherov, Pasta, Marchand, Rantanen, Patty Kane, Perry, Getzlaf, Makar, etc., these guys so often take over games when it matters, and legitimately dominate. Matthews and Marner are consistently completely useless in the crucial games, JT mostly useless, Nylander has some moments but not enough to compensate. That’s why we lose - we’re built around guys who so consistently give you nothing when it matters most.

 

[fahad203]

When he’s at his best in the regular season, he’s damn good, but when it counts in the playoffs, he’s SO consistently invisible. Can’t have your $13.25 mil franchise centre turn into a $4 mil player when the games really, really matter, and this is exactly what he does, every time.

His 6th career game 7. Lost every one, 0 goals, 3 assists, -4, always invisible. It is an absolute stone cold guarantee that Matthews will not show up when you need him most, and if that’s your franchise player, you’re f***ed in the playoffs.

Wyatt Jhonston been in the league for 3 years. He has played 3 game 7s. He has 3 goals. He has won all game 7s

Matthews is anti-clutch as it gets. He's a glorified Rick Nash. Scores nice goals during regular season. But come playoff, he's no where to be found
Except Rick Nash was never the highest paid player in the league

 

[LilySmoov]

Look, I know this is hearsay/rumors and it very well may get deleted. I wasn't even going to share it (I've been sitting on this for over 48 hours) but since the passengers comment I feel it merits being aired in here. My cousin has an uncle, unrelated to me, who went to game 6 in Florida, and ended up in the same hotel as them. Spent a lot of time bumping shoulders with them. Here's what he said...

Assuming this is real, this genuinely saddens me. He brought it on himself (again, if true), but man, it really didn't have to be this way. These 3 were the most promising group of young players we've ever had - maybe ever will have. They had the potential to be historically special, but this is what they turned into, and it's just soul-crushing.

 

[mix1home]

I don't think this thread will age well.

And it aged like 48 months Parmesan cheese or should I say 30 years old whiskey?

 

[mix1home]

I just wonder if this is the time we chase player out of the city and start to look for 1C and 2C who can handle pressure playing in this market? I mean for many years we were trying to find those or trade for one or two. It’s not easy, eh? Then we miraculously got two. But then many years got wasted with no D or G. I think this is first year we got G and our D was playoffs caliber. It would be really disappointing to get to downward spiral when it seems we just started to build in right direction.

 

[rebuildorbust]

I want Byfield back as a center piece in a trade to LA. I think they would bite

 

[TopCheeseShotta]

The nerves on Matty are his biggest weakness. All the talent in the world, when healthy.. but a shivering mess when it's grind time. As the Captain goes, the team goes - and that means meekly into the summer.

 

[Mr_Fun]

Like everyone else on this team, he was awful when we needed him tonight. The fact of the matter is we needed a game 7 performance from him and he didn't deliver.

 

[centipede2233]

Look, I know this is hearsay/rumors and it very well may get deleted. I wasn't even going to share it (I've been sitting on this for over 48 hours) but since the passengers comment I feel it merits being aired in here. My cousin has an uncle, unrelated to me, who went to game 6 in Florida, and ended up in the same hotel as them. Spent a lot of time bumping shoulders with them. Here's what he said...

This wouldn’t surprise me. Matthew’s has an enormous ego. Remember that name check he did in a pre season game a few years back. You can see Matthew’s and marner in their interviews, they are not likeable people. And if the vast majority of fans can see this, im pretty sure their teammates certainly know this. Add in the fact they make the most (outside of nylander) and they don’t impact the game like they should. Patches had the same amount of goals as matthews in the series and he was a tryout!

 

[LeafsMonster]

Let's pretend for a second that it's true that there were too many passengers and that Matthews and Marner weren't among them. Did they even stop for a second to think that maybe the reason that all this team can afford is a bunch of passengers is because these two soak the team for every dollar they can get, every time they can?

Also, I hope they realize passengers only go where drivers take them. So the responsibility still lies on guy with the C and the guy with the A to drag their team to the 3rd round.

If you're gonna call out your team, you better make sure the criticism doesn't apply to you. And you gotta back your comments with your play. You're a leader so lead by example. They did none of that so imo they don't get to call anyone out but themselves.

And a leader leads by example by taking accountability on themselves and protecting their team. Not throwing others under the bus and acting like you are above the criticism. I honestly don't know how these guys got letters. The best player doesn't have to be the captain and this is why. The best leader should be. The one a team wants to fight for and someone that would battle for the team.

 

[NVious]

Look, I know this is hearsay/rumors and it very well may get deleted. I wasn't even going to share it (I've been sitting on this for over 48 hours) but since the passengers comment I feel it merits being aired in here. My cousin has an uncle, unrelated to me, who went to game 6 in Florida, and ended up in the same hotel as them. Spent a lot of time bumping shoulders with them. Here's what he said...

Sounds like they didn't recognize they were in the presence of Gods.

 

[capfit9]

 

[ClarkSittler]

Loser captain, perfect fit for such a loser franchise.

 

[Mentat]

Too many passengers, ey Auston? Indeed. Starting with yourself, the Captain. WHERE`S THE ACCOUNTABILITY? The self awareness, the leadership?
Pathetic, disgraceful and shameful.

Not that you give a shit about it. You clearly don´t.

 

[jcs0218]

From an outside objective observer's (non-Toronto fan) point of view:

Auston Matthews is a team cancer.

It may be difficult to accept that reality. I am sure many Toronto fans are emotionally attached/invested in the player. That is understandable, since the highs (two 60 goal seasons, MVP, etc.) have been great.

But everything I see from him and hear from him spells cancer.

- Putting his hunt for 70 goals ahead of preparing himself for the 2024 playoffs. Wasn't he supposedly nursing some injury down the stretch that season? No reason for him to keep playing in meaningless games since they were locked into the 3rd Atlantic spot unless he was putting his hunt for 70 goals ahead of the playoffs.

- Taking short deals at top dollar value. Rather than committing long term to a team that was obviously preparing him to be its captain, he signs for short term all so he can enter free agency again as soon as possible so he can go from $13.5 million to whatever his market value is in 3-4 years. It shows he is all about the money and puts the Toronto Maple Leafs 2nd priority.

- Routinely blaming everyone but himself for losses. Just look at his "too many passengers" comment after Game 7 this year. This isn't the first time he has thrown his teammates under the bus.

I think the Toronto Maple Leafs would be better in the long run if they could find a way to get rid of this player. He is a cancer.

 

[KaN19]

Listened to this punk's presser... He sounds like a whiny spoiled child. Not captain-like whatsoever and makes Tavares seem like Messier by comparison.

He's the highest paid player in the league and turns 28 before next season... Least he could do is keep his chin up, speak with composure and take some damn accountability.

 

[jcs0218]

I think he’s more of a problem than Marner

I think Marner at least cares. He just can't deal with the pressure very well, and he doesn't cope well as a smaller player playing against bigger players in tight-checking games. But it does seem that Marner does care a little and gets upset when he loses.

With Matthews, I don't think he cares. He is probably happy that he lost tonight so he could go party with Bieber rather than having to focus on playing the Hurricanes on Tuesday.

 

[jcs0218]

Full passenger quote for context.

Still sounds bad overall to me.

I think that people need to take a look at Auston's eyes in this video and see that there is NOTHING THERE.

No emotion. No hatred that he just lost a Game 7. No agony of defeat.

Compare his eyes to the way Crosby's, MacKinnon's, or McDavid's eyes look after a crushing loss.

 

[647Hockey]

When he’s at his best in the regular season, he’s damn good, but when it counts in the playoffs, he’s SO consistently invisible. Can’t have your $13.25 mil franchise centre turn into a $4 mil player when the games really, really matter, and this is exactly what he does, every time.

His 6th career game 7. Lost every one, 0 goals, 3 assists, -4, always invisible. It is an absolute stone cold guarantee that Matthews will not show up when you need him most, and if that’s your franchise player, you’re f***ed in the playoffs.

Since Matthews is a cherry picker who needs someone to pass him the puck or get a loose rebound, his goal scoring also heavily depends on his linemates doing well too. Once those other guys get shut down, so goes AM too.

JT is a different kind of player. His goals and pts are near the net doing rebounds or deflections from 10 ft out. Once the opposing D shuts down those chances or pushes him out of the way, so goes JT's pts too (2 goals/0 assists in the last 9 playoff games).

Marner tries by zipping around but it somehow just doesnt work out in playoffs. His fancy back passes and spins hardly work in the playoffs yet he keeps doing them. And Nylander is kind of similar but does do better in playoffs.

But the core 4 did almost zero final 4 games. They just dont have the heart or talent to go the extra notch in the playoffs. 9 years in a row. It's not that they are a bad person in real life on a personal level or anything like that. But people have a certain kind of attitude and personality and its hard to change that. And leaf core players are skilled guys in reg season, but cant handle harder playoffs.

But a grinder who doesnt give a shit going all out like Sam Bennett (a 50 pt player) will dominate leafs who cant pile up pts easier like in the reg season.

And the Leafs support players who are suppose to fill the gaps over the years typically dont do much either.

On the other hand, you look at Florida's stats, Tkachuk, Barkov and Verhagehe arent even doing great this playoffs. They are doing ok, but nothing great. But subbing in racking up pts are Marchand, Lundell and Listoranien (sp) who are at or near the top of the roster in pts.

You'd never get that from a leafs roster.

 

[jcs0218]

Also, I hope they realize passengers only go where drivers take them. So the responsibility still lies on guy with the C and the guy with the A to drag their team to the 3rd round.

If you're gonna call out your team, you better make sure the criticism doesn't apply to you. And you gotta back your comments with your play. You're a leader so lead by example. They did none of that so imo they don't get to call anyone out but themselves.

And a leader leads by example by taking accountability on themselves and protecting their team. Not throwing others under the bus and acting like you are above the criticism. I honestly don't know how these guys got letters. The best player doesn't have to be the captain and this is why. The best leader should be. The one a team wants to fight for and someone that would battle for the team.

Knies is more captain material than any of the Core 4.

 

[mikeyz]

I think that people need to take a look at Auston's eyes in this video and see that there is NOTHING THERE.

No emotion. No hatred that he just lost a Game 7. No agony of defeat.

Compare his eyes to the way Crosby's, MacKinnon's, or McDavid's eyes look after a crushing loss.

This is 100% it. I was actually talking to a buddy of mine after the game about this exact thing.

 

[mikeyz]

Knies is more captain material than any of the Core 4 combined

Fixed it for you.