Maple Leafs News & Rumors: Matthews, Nylander & Tavares

The Toronto Maple Leafs won their second straight game of the season with a 7-4 victory over the Minnesota Wild. And, once again the team can thank another stellar performance from Auston Matthews. Although on Saturday night, the situation was not so desperate, Matthews amazingly put up his second consecutive hat trick.

Matthews opened the scoring for Toronto, firing a rocket past Wild goaltender Filip Gustavsson to tie the game at 1-1. It was his fifth goal in just four periods. However, Matthews wasn’t the only star of the night. 

William Nylander scored two goals and added an assist. Mitch Marner contributed two assists. Tyler Bertuzzi scored his first goal for his new team. John Tavares registered two assists. And, Calle Jarnkrok scored the game-winning goal in the third period. By the way, Tavares now leads the NHL with five assists in his first two games.

To read the three-takeaways post about the game, check out my THW colleague Michael DeRosa’s piece linked above. In this post, I’ll add some comments about the specific contributions of two key Maple Leafs players – Matthews and Nylander.

Item One: Auston Matthews: A Historic Start to the Season

Any discussion of Saturday night’s (Oct. 14 game) has to start with Matthews. After the game, Maple Leafs head coach Sheldon Keefe praised Matthews‘ performance, saying, “You don’t expect back-to-back hat tricks, of course, but I’ve gotten somewhat comfortable and used to Auston having big nights, making a big impact.” 

The Maple Leafs, who had won their season opener in a shootout against Montreal, fell behind early when Ryan Hartman scored for the Wild. But Matthews quickly answered to tie the game. He then added two more later.

Perhaps the most important aspect of all this is that Matthews appears healthy, which is fantastic news for the Maple Leafs and their hockey fans. With this second hat trick, Matthews has now etched his name in the history books as only the fifth player in NHL history to achieve this remarkable feat. He joins the company of Alex Ovechkin (2017-18), Cy Denneny (1917-18), Joe Malone (1917-18), and Reg Noble (1917-18). I know Ovechkin; however, the other three players I had to look up. 

[As an aside, for those who care, Cy Denneny played in the NHL from 1917 to 1929, primarily with the Ottawa Senators. Joe Malone played in the league from 1917 to 1924 mostly with the Montreal Canadiens. Finally, Reg Noble played from 1917 to 1933 including the Toronto Arenas (when they changed the team’s name to the Toronto St. Patricks), the Detroit Cougars, Detroit Falcons, and finally the Detroit Red Wings in 1932-33.] 

This season, Matthews has been a force. His outstanding start is great news for the Maple Leafs. As the season unfolds, fans can only begin to wonder how many more spectacular games they can expect from the newly-extended center. He’s dialed in and is ready to once again track down the Rocket Richard Trophy.

Item Two: William Nylander Shines with Two Goals and an Assist

William Nylander continued to dazzle with his standout performance, recording two goals and an assist. His first goal of the night was a jaw-dropping highlight reel moment. Late in the first period, Nylander made a mesmerizing move that left the Wild defenders watching. Starting in the left circle, he cut sharply around every defender, then inside through the crease, totally deceiving Joel Eriksson Ek, and skillfully shot the puck past Filip Gustavsson’s outstretched glove. That goal came at the end of the first period and pushed Toronto’s lead to 3-1.

Nylander didn’t stop there. He added another to his goal total in the third period, making it 7-3 for the Maple Leafs. His powerful shot from the left circle beat Gustavsson on the short side below the blocker. In the first two games of the season, Nylander’s been on fire. He now has scored three goals, added two assists, and thrown 11 shots on goal.

After the game, Maple Leafs coach Keefe talked about Nylander’s hot start with five points in two games: “He is skating. He is confident. The first-period goal is world-class stuff — the poise to make that move, the presence to bring it across the crease, and the courage to do so is world-class stuff. It was really good to see it. … Auston is off to a great start here, but so is Willy.”

Maple Leafs fans can look forward to more stellar performances from Nylander as he continues to be a driving force for the team.

What’s Next for the Maple Leafs?

Matthews’ (and the Maple Leafs) next opponent is the Chicago Blackhawks and Connor Bedard on home ice Monday night. It should be a fun game to watch. I have caught a couple of the Bedard games, and he seems like the real deal. It should be a great game for Maple Leafs fans to watch.