Matthews Nets Four in Historic Debut
On October 12th, 2016, history was made in Ottawa, Canada. It was there that the Toronto Maple Leafs and Ottawa Senators faced off on the opening night of the 2016-2017 NHL season. This game, however, ended up being home to a historic moment in a young man's hockey career. As Auston Matthews stepped on to the surface of the ice, every Leafs fan (if not every hockey fan) knew that they could expect great things from the 1st overall draft pick. However, not many people could have predicted an NHL debut where Matthews would light the lamp four times, becoming the first player to do so in NHL history.
I envy the fans who got the chance to see the future of the Toronto Maple Leafs organization put on such a show that managed to leave stone faced Mike Babcock in shock. As he plainly stated in a post-game press conference, "We’re all part of history tonight because we’re here...A special player.” (Per Chris Johnston, Sportsnet). Although I can think of a plethora of different adjective's that can be used to describe Matthews debut, we'll stick with 'a special player' for the time being. Seeing as it was just his first National Hockey League game, many factors can contribute towards Matthews likelihood of success in his first NHL season (See McDavid injury, 2015-2016). As of now, the young super-rookie is a prodigy on skates, and imagining him slowing down is out of the question. He may not be scoring nearly as many goals each game (lets remember, he's still human), but theres no doubting the young American and his projected point totals.
According to Babcock it was the best game "by 10 miles" the Leafs have played since he became coach. Unfortunately, the Leafs won't have the luxury of relying completely on Matthews if they want to win games, which was evident in last night's loss to the Senators in overtime. Frederick Andersen had a merely satisfactory performance in the crease, and 'veteran' players on the team seemed to be non -existent. It was by far a rookie showcase, featuring Matthews, Marner, and Nylander, which isn't completely a bad thing. As long as the Leafs actively develop their young stars, the future will continue to look bright in Toronto.
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