Confirmed with Link: Leafs sign F Auston Matthews to extension (4 years, $13.25M AAV)

[Gary Nylund]

I ran the numbers quick, so youre welcome to double check, but it seemed like Draisaitl was more consistent than McDavid. Even with the drop this year and heavy PP production, I thought McDavid's playoffs was fine this year and its tough to fault that type of production either way.

The big difference(s) when i see Matthews and Marners playoff numbers is they dont have that huge year, like Draistl and McDavid last year, and they don't get in a lot of high scoring games/series. You could say they also drive that though in the fact they dont take many risks or cheat much for offense.

Yeah I don't have the energy to crunch a bunch of numbers but I think I mentioned earlier, someone else posted a few days ago numbers for a bunch of top players and M&M were the ones whos playoff production dropped off quite a bit. That's been the story for the team as a whole, and those two lead the way. Maybe this year will be different, I don't really have high hopes that it will be but I'll cling to the little hope that I do have because as a Leaf fan, what else is there?

 

[Stephen]

Auston Matthews is one of the few (I count 2 others) in recent memory that lead the entire league in goals in his first 7 years

Despite playing in a lower scoring league with multiple injuries, pp2 and 19 min a night he is top 10 in
Goals by 25. Fasted to 300 and is scoring at an almost (2 back) identical pace as Alex ovechkin at 25 with 6 more games.

Matthews is a top 10 goal scorer in history at this time in his career and the second best since the best all time.

Matthews has been an incredibly dominant player. Who also is one of the first C who has led the league in blocked shots as a forward.

I agree with what you are saying in terms of his elite status as a scorer in this game and as one of the most dominant players in the league broadly... but he hasn't been a PP2, 19 minute a night player for a long time now.

Secondly, I just think McDavid comparisons are best avoided because it's just an unflattering comparison for anybody. There's nothing stopping Matthews from closing the gap again, scoring 60, 100 plus points, winning more individual trophies and leading the team to a cup, but we don't need to win the McDavid H2H for Auston to be a success in the coming years.

 

[francis246]

Last time I checked, 1 PPG = 1 5v5 goal. WTF cares how they score. If it is so easy why aren't our f***ers scoring on the PP ?? Oh yeah, I forgot we do not get PPs because the league/refs are out to get us. OK.

LMAO this is amazing, how many times in the Marner or John Tavares thread did I or others say this but we got even strength numbers rammed down our throat. By you and others. Now we use that same argument for McDavid and it’s all the same now. This place never fails man.

 

[LeafEgo]

I think mcd would do it different. 8 years was expected when he signed. It was either 2 year bridge or 8 years. 4&5 was unheard of. Mcd should of been the one to start this and I think he regrets it. He prob wishes he signed five making it 8 years in Edmonton and then signed another five in Toronto (where he's always wanted to be,)

Yeah I was speaking from a teams perspective re asset mgmt, but you're probably right about McD. They squandered his savings (Campbel?) and there was no good reason to think they wouldn't. Our stars could look at things similarly: are the discounts going to go to Murray's and Mrazek's; are they likely to produce playoff results? We did change GMs, but other teams make the decision easier.

Yeah probably Edmonton, they’d probably never hire Peter Chiarelli lmao. The guy is an awful GM and their goaltending is atrocious. People act like Edmonton is the gold standard, what the hell has Connor and Leon done? They’ve won a few rounds but who cares they’ve never won the cup or sniffed the finals. They are the exact same as the leafs IMO. Just the western conference version.

Edmonton is not regretting the contract they signed with McDavid.

 

[francis246]

Yeah I was speaking from a teams perspective re asset mgmt, but you're probably right about McD. They squandered his savings (Campbel?) and there was no good reason to think they wouldn't. Our stars could look at things similarly: are the discounts going to go to Murray's and Mrazek's; are they likely to produce playoff results? We did change GMs, but other teams make the decision easier.


Edmonton is not regretting the contract they signed with McDavid.

Neither is Toronto, I don’t think the organization gives a shit whether Matthews signs 5 year deals or 8 year deals as long as he keeps putting pen to paper.

Maybe they regret signing Tavares to $11 mill or maybe regret letting Zach Hyman go over term but other than that I don’t think they regret anything about the Matthews, Marner or Nylander contracts.

 

[ToneDog]

LMAO this is amazing, how many times in the Marner or John Tavares thread did I or others say this but we got even strength numbers rammed down our throat. By you and others. Now we use that same argument for McDavid and it’s all the same now. This place never fails man.

Go ahead and find one post from me talking about goals 5v5 vs PPG let alone ramming it down your throat. I dare you and wish you luck.

 

[Boxscore]

I'm curious.


What argument does McDavid have for being paid so much?

He hasn't won a cup yet, and although he has reached a round further than Matthews has in the playoffs, his team was swept in that next round....

In fact, McDavid has missed the playoffs twice in his NHL career despite playing in a pathetically weak division.


So, if individual awards are in no way to be determinant of a player's contract demands, what makes McDavid worthy of such a lofty salary?

Are you truly comparing Auston Matthews to Connor McDavid? A guy who scored 85 points last year to McDavid's 153?

McDavid has 5 Art Ross trophies, 3 Harts, 4 Lindsays, and a Rocket.

McDavid is 4th all-time in points-per-game behind Mario Lemieux. Matthews is 22nd all-time behind Bernie Federko, Nikita Kucherov and others.

McDavid could retire tomorrow and might go down as a Top-10 player in hockey history.

Matthews broke 90 points once in his career. McDavid did it 7 times in 8 years lmao.

Matthews PPG in the playoffs is 0.88 and MacDavid's is 1.53... almost double.

You're trolling right now, yes?

 

[Boxscore]

I think you’re missing the point. No one is saying McDavid is comparable to Matthews regular season wise. The point is McDavid really hasn’t had a ton of playoff success. He’s made the second round twice but has not done much other than that and has made the playoffs less than Matthews has in his career to date.

I think the hypocrisy comes when people try and diminish the things Matthews has done in his career or even Marner with lack of playoff success but then that is never applied to Leon or Connor who have also shit the bed in the playoffs and are better players than Matthews and Marner. So why are they not held to the same standard?

McDavid's PPG in the playoffs is 1.53. Matthews is 0.88.

The Oilers fail in the playoffs mainly because they absolutely botched a few high draft picks. Despite McDavid and Draisaitl both scoring on levels rivaled by only Gretzky and Lemieux in the playoffs, the Oilers cannot win because of their supporting cast. The Leafs, on the other hand, fail in the playoffs in large part because their "best player" has historically scored well under a PPG in the post-season. If Matthews put up the numbers McDavid and Draisaitl did in the playoffs, the Leafs definitely win more than 1 round in 7 years.

There are no mental gymnastics, voodoo stats, or baseless intangible hocus-pocus that can reasonably compare Matthews to McDavid.

 

[Gabriel426]

Just out of curiosity, if AM signs for 11mil/8yrs instead of 13.25mil/4yrs, would it diminish his status as the top goal scorer in the league and some even suggest him being the 2nd best player in the league or take away the fact that he often underperformed in the playoffs esp in elimination games?

Nomatter how many years or the numbers AM signed, he had yet to perform at his regular season level in the playoffs esp in elimination games. Something that Mack, Drai, and McD had done a lot more times.

It is really simple why I think AM is not worth his current value NOW bc he really hasn't perform at his regular season level in the playoffs esp elimination games while Mack had done it, Drai had done it and McD had done it.

 

[DarkKnight]

You get the big money to lead when the team needs it. A warrior who fights through adversity with desire and puts the team on his back. Anyone who doubts Matthews earned this contract, look no further to the highlight reel from the Florida series…

 

[egd27]

The problem is not hypocrisy. You are just not registering the magnitude of McDavid’s statistical dominance in the regular season even if he was a complete dog at defense and a total playoff bust.

McDavid’s numbers cannot be understated. He’s been in the league one more season than Matthews and has 850 career points to 542. That’s a 300 point difference in a 7-8 year career representing 3x additional 100 point seasons. Go find a player Matthews has a 300 point lead on over this time and that’s the difference between these two players.

You can’t use McDavid to establish some whataboutism here.

For fun, 3 forwards that meet this criteria

Jordan Stall
Alex Wennberg
Conor Sheary

 

[Legion34]

I agree with what you are saying in terms of his elite status as a scorer in this game and as one of the most dominant players in the league broadly... but he hasn't been a PP2, 19 minute a night player for a long time now.

Secondly, I just think McDavid comparisons are best avoided because it's just an unflattering comparison for anybody. There's nothing stopping Matthews from closing the gap again, scoring 60, 100 plus points, winning more individual trophies and leading the team to a cup, but we don't need to win the McDavid H2H for Auston to be a success in the coming years.

Reading it again, maybe I misunderstood your post

Are you truly comparing Auston Matthews to Connor McDavid? A guy who scored 85 points last year to McDavid's 153?

McDavid has 5 Art Ross trophies, 3 Harts, 4 Lindsays, and a Rocket.

McDavid is 4th all-time in points-per-game behind Mario Lemieux. Matthews is 22nd all-time behind Bernie Federko, Nikita Kucherov and others.

McDavid could retire tomorrow and might go down as a Top-10 player in hockey history.

Matthews broke 90 points once in his career. McDavid did it 7 times in 8 years lmao.

Matthews PPG in the playoffs is 0.88 and MacDavid's is 1.53... almost double.

You're trolling right now, yes?

Why not do goals?

 

[TS Quint]

Auston Matthews is one of the few (I count 2 others) in recent memory that lead the entire league in goals in his first 7 years

Despite playing in a lower scoring league with multiple injuries, pp2 and 19 min a night he is top 10 in
Goals by 25. Fasted to 300 and is scoring at an almost (2 back) identical pace as Alex ovechkin at 25 with 6 more games.

Matthews is a top 10 goal scorer in history at this time in his career and the second best since the best all time.

Matthews has been an incredibly dominant player. Who also is one of the first C who has led the league in blocked shots as a forward.

What do you mean? He has never lead the league in blocked shots. When doesn’t a center lead the league in blocked shots among forwards? It just makes sense that Centres block more shots than wingers.

 

[pcruz]

Are you truly comparing Auston Matthews to Connor McDavid? A guy who scored 85 points last year to McDavid's 153?

McDavid has 5 Art Ross trophies, 3 Harts, 4 Lindsays, and a Rocket.

McDavid is 4th all-time in points-per-game behind Mario Lemieux. Matthews is 22nd all-time behind Bernie Federko, Nikita Kucherov and others.

McDavid could retire tomorrow and might go down as a Top-10 player in hockey history.

Matthews broke 90 points once in his career. McDavid did it 7 times in 8 years lmao.

Matthews PPG in the playoffs is 0.88 and MacDavid's is 1.53... almost double.

You're trolling right now, yes?

So


Are regular season and individual awards relevant or not?

You can't argue both sides.


You don't seem to know where you stand in that argument.

 

[francis246]

McDavid's PPG in the playoffs is 1.53. Matthews is 0.88.

The Oilers fail in the playoffs mainly because they absolutely botched a few high draft picks. Despite McDavid and Draisaitl both scoring on levels rivaled by only Gretzky and Lemieux in the playoffs, the Oilers cannot win because of their supporting cast. The Leafs, on the other hand, fail in the playoffs in large part because their "best player" has historically scored well under a PPG in the post-season. If Matthews put up the numbers McDavid and Draisaitl did in the playoffs, the Leafs definitely win more than 1 round in 7 years.

There are no mental gymnastics, voodoo stats, or baseless intangible hocus-pocus that can reasonably compare Matthews to McDavid.

Thanks for your input, though completely irrelevant to what I was speaking to. No one is comparing Matthews to McDavid in terms of statistical out put, we know this. McDavid and Draisaitl are miles ahead of everyone. We are talking about the narrative of being playoff chokers. McDavid and Draisaitl in my opinion are just as much of playoff chokers as Matthews and Marner. They get a ton more power plays so their numbers are inflated, especially McDavids. His even strength production wasn’t that great this year. To me, if you don’t get it done you don’t get it done. Doesn’t matter if you have 23 points or if you have 11. You still failed at the objective of winning.

 

[pcruz]

What do you mean? He has never lead the league in blocked shots. When doesn’t a center lead the league in blocked shots among forwards? It just makes sense that Centres block more shots than wingers.

Which of the following players score 40 - 60 goals per season?

Nick Bonino
Boone Jenner
Luke Glendenning
Auston Matthews
Anze Kopitar
Joe Pavelski
JG Pageau
Radek Faksa


That's the list, in order, of top forwards in blocked shots since Matthews entered the league.


The list of forwards to have led the league in blocked shots is littered with 3rd line players and Matthews.

Kopitar shows up well on the lists as well, and that's always been a big factor as to why he is considered a perennial Selke candidate.

 

[Stephen]

Reading it again, maybe I misunderstood your post


Why not do goals?

Why, and who cares? Matthews has every opportunity to be an elite, top end player in his own right and take us to a championship. That’s really all that matters. Maybe he can close the gap again with McDavid this year. Maybe McDavid pulls ahead even more and starts dominating over Matthews in goal scoring.

I just don’t think hunting for unflattering comparisons is the best way to enjoy this player.

 

[francis246]

Just out of curiosity, if AM signs for 11mil/8yrs instead of 13.25mil/4yrs, would it diminish his status as the top goal scorer in the league and some even suggest him being the 2nd best player in the league or take away the fact that he often underperformed in the playoffs esp in elimination games?

Nomatter how many years or the numbers AM signed, he had yet to perform at his regular season level in the playoffs esp in elimination games. Something that Mack, Drai, and McD had done a lot more times.

It is really simple why I think AM is not worth his current value NOW bc he really hasn't perform at his regular season level in the playoffs esp elimination games while Mack had done it, Drai had done it and McD had done it.

Matthews goal scoring ability will always trump his playoff woes in contract negotiations. That’s just the way it is. Doesn’t mean I agree with it. Same thing with McDavid his ability to produce at a high clip will always trump lack of playoff success. When it comes to those types of players owners are looking at overall value to the club and they aren’t going to try and die on the playoff production or lack of playoff success hill. Teams make most of their revenue in the regular season. That’s what they are paying those superstars for.

 

[TS Quint]

Which of the following players score 40 - 60 goals per season?

Nick Bonino
Boone Jenner
Luke Glendenning
Auston Matthews
Anze Kopitar
Joe Pavelski
JG Pageau
Radek Faksa


That's the list, in order, of top forwards in blocked shots since Matthews entered the league.


The list of forwards to have led the league in blocked shots is littered with 3rd line players and Matthews.

Kopitar shows up well on the lists as well, and that's always been a big factor as to why he is considered a perennial Selke candidate.

Squirm around all you want. The comment was directed at:

”Who also is one of the first C who has led the league in blocked shots as a forward.”

im not interested in moving around the goal posts. I’m just curious what the poster (not you) meant by the comment.

 

[pcruz]

Squirm around all you want. The comment was directed at:

”Who also is one of the first C who has led the league in blocked shots as a forward.”

im not interested in moving around the goal posts. I’m just curious what the poster (not you) meant by the comment.

Likely "first first line C to lead the NHL in blocked shots".

Which is why I checked the stats going back to when he joined the league.

 

[Throw More Waffles]

LMAO nothing changes the fact that McDavid took over 16% of his teams cap. That is a fact. Another fact is that Matthews has never taken up 16% or more of his teams cap.

Matthews is taking up the same amount of cap space, in terms of percentage, as his previous 5 year contract. Which means Leafs are getting Matthews at a lower cost than McDavid (signed 8 years) for a total of 9 years.

McDavid has never taken over 16% of cap.

The highest was 15.7%

 

[Sypher04]

McDavid has never taken over 16% of cap.

The highest was 15.7%

The nitpicking in this thread is a bit ridiculous. He’s clearly talking about signing cap percentage which is usually what people use.

That said not sure what is so significant about being over or under 16%

 

[tuckerintensity]

Yeah I don't have the energy to crunch a bunch of numbers but I think I mentioned earlier, someone else posted a few days ago numbers for a bunch of top players and M&M were the ones whos playoff production dropped off quite a bit.

PPG the last two seasons... 1.22, 1.15, 1.11. One of those is MacKinnon, one is Marner, and one is Matthews. But which is which?

Yup Matty is one of the best goal scorers to play the game but McDavid has passed him by IMO. Let's see if this past year for Matty was an anomaly or he reverts back to the 50+ goal scorer he has been. My guess is McDavid puts up 50+ g and 90+ assists for the next few years if he remains healthy. This guy may not have reached his ceiling and that is one scary thought. As much as I hate the Oil for stealing 99 and lucking into 97, it would not piss me off to see 97 hoist the SC.

Like McDavid being the best player in the world by far makes Matthews bad or something. For fun though, since he's come into the league, Matthews has outscored McDavid by 12 goals (11 at ES) in 43 less games. Pull in entire careers and McDavid has four more goals in 88 more games.

 

[saltming]

I think it makes sense to judge overall performance and I think playoff performance should carry more weight so yes, when playoff performance drops that has a substantial impact on the overall grade.


Supposedly McDavid took less, maybe not that much less though I don't really know. I wouldn't say those contracts are crippling though, the Matthews contract isn't even that bad and IMO it's Marners contract that stands out like a sore thumb.

I like our team better than EDM too, but It's probably hard for me to be objective at this point. Sometimes I think all those playoff failures have fried my CPU.

Hmmm at the time mcD signed his contract his cap hit was a higher % of the cap.
This percentage of the team cap seems to be the thing now.
That said I wonder if this is a pridham thing? He's a cap genius, so is he saying we can allocate X % of the cap to the stars and that should allow us to fill the slots around them with adequate players?
I hate the cap. I also really don't care what players make, though I understand the ramifications, because if I always want the highest wage available to me. I mean once he's set for life, take a discount then.

As for fried CPU, PTLD is a thing hahahaha

I maybe an optimist but I think they will figure it out this year. Will they win a cup? but I think some playoff success is coming.

 

[ToneDog]

PPG the last two seasons... 1.22, 1.15, 1.11. One of those is MacKinnon, one is Marner, and one is Matthews. But which is which?

Like McDavid being the best player in the world by far makes Matthews bad or something. For fun though, since he's come into the league, Matthews has outscored McDavid by 12 goals (11 at ES) in 43 less games. Pull in entire careers and McDavid has four more goals in 88 more games.

Like I said, "Matty is one of the best goal scorers to play the game". Unfortunately McDavid has found another gear when it comes to goal scoring so unless Matty regains his form, I see McDavid widening the gap. McDavid is on another level the last few years. Not many stars have been able to keep up.