Saturday night’s game against the Boston Bruins was a rollercoaster for Toronto Maple Leafs superstar Auston Matthews.
One moment, the 27-year-old sniper was the hero for his team as his fourth goal of the season forced a 3-3 tie with 77 seconds remaining in the third period. The next moment, a costly turnover in overtime, which led to Bruins forward Brad Marchand’s game-winning goal, painted Matthews as the villain in the eyes of some Maple Leafs fans.
That’s the double-edged sword that comes with being an NHL captain. Whether the Maple Leafs win or lose, Matthews’ name will likely be attached to the final result. It’s especially true when tensions are high.
Toronto head coach Craig Berube isn’t afraid to place blame where it’s due. Having said that, the 58-year-old bench boss isn’t willing to throw his captain under the bus for his club’s latest loss.
“We gotta support (Matthews) a little bit better on that play,” Berube said during the post-game scrum, per TSN’s Mark Masters. “We left him alone there. It was a mistake by everybody out there.”
The game-deciding blunder occurred halfway through the overtime buried. Having just gathered the puck in his own zone, Matthews sent a pass around the boards that appeared to be intended for Mitchell Marner.
Unfortunately, Marner was deep in the neutral zone, which allowed the Bruins’ David Pastrnak to intercept the puck. Pastrnak then slap-passed the puck over to Marchand, who jammed it past Maple Leafs goaltender Anthony Stolarz to give Boston the OT victory over its Atlantic Division rival.
After the game, Matthews hinted that he likely wouldn’t have made that passing attempt if he knew Marner wasn’t ready.
“I thought somebody was coming back,” the Maple Leafs captain told reporters. “I looked up and that wasn’t the case.”
Toronto Maple Leafs center Auston Matthews (34) awaits the faceoff against the Columbus Blue Jackets at Nationwide Arena.
Aaron Doster-Imagn Images
Following Saturday night’s loss, the Maple Leafs have now lost three consecutive games as well as four of their last five outings. Even if hockey is a team sport, Matthews made it clear earlier this week that his performance must improve if Toronto is to end its skid.
“It starts with me,” Matthews said after Thursday’s 5-1 loss to the St. Louis Blues. “I think the message was pretty simple to the whole group that we just need to be better.”
The two-time NHL All-Star is off to a relatively slow start to the 2024-25 campaign, tallying four goals and three assists in his first nine games. Although that’s a better output than an average player, it’s night and day compared to his 69-goal, 107-point performance from last season.
Outside of goaltending, the Maple Leafs have struggled across the board. They’ll need an improved group effort if they hope to turn this ship around and begin to resemble Stanley Cup contenders.
Matthews and the Maple Leafs’ next shot at redemption comes when they visit the Winnipeg Jets at Canada Life Centre on Monday.