The 2023-24 NHL season is underway and there’s already plenty to talk about when it comes to the Toronto Maple Leafs. The offense is already off to a red-hot start after scoring 12 goals in their first two games. But it’s who’s leading the charge that shouldn’t come as a surprise to many as a result of the torrid start.
After signing a contract extension with a cap hit of $13.25 million for four years in the offseason, Auston Matthews is back tearing up the league and he’s on a mission after scoring back-to-back hat tricks to start the season. As a comparison, he didn’t score his sixth goal until his 12th game against the Boston Bruins last season. We know that he’s one of the league’s premier and consistent goal scorers since coming into the league in 2017. After a “down year” where he scored 40 goals, seeing a rejuvenated and even more lethal Matthews is a sight to behold as he’s once again taking the league by storm.
Even though it’s early, you can’t help but revel in the dominance that Matthews is having as he has six goals in two games. He’s the fifth player overall and first player to have back-to-back hat tricks to start the season since Alex Ovechkin did it back in 2017-18. While that alone is impressive, it’s how he’s doing it that’s making it even more intriguing. A 246-goal pace is not achievable by any means, but 60 goals is back to being a realistic possibility for Matthews. Maybe more.
Matthews Healthy and Back to Form
The biggest thing that can get Matthews onto that path and the main reason why he’s off to a blazing hot start, is that he’s healthy and his wrist appears to be back to what it was in 2021-22 where he scored 60 goals.
“I do think he’s come in refreshed and healthy. He’s had a really good offseason,” head coach Sheldon Keefe said about Matthews according to The Hockey News’ David Alter. “I really don’t think he cares how many goals he gets, he cares about how many wins we get.”
You can tell that something was off with Matthews’ shot and goal scoring impact. His accuracy wasn’t on point at times, missing marks and he wasn’t scoring the goals he should be. It was evident that he seemed to be bothered by something in his wrist. It was confirmed that Matthews was dealing with some discomfort in his hand. The good thing is that he started to get back to speed towards the end of the regular season and into the postseason.
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Scoring 40 goals is still impressive, but you have to think that if Matthews wasn’t dealing with a nagging injury, he would’ve been at the top of the goal scoring lead. Six periods into the 2023-24 season and another offseason to fully heal and recover, he’s back at the top and he wants to remain there. Just when you think that Matthews is playing his game to that point, he finds another gear and is seemingly unstoppable as a result.
“I want to play at the highest level that I can every night,” Matthews said according to Joshua Clipperton of the Canadian Press. “Just trying to go out and put in my best effort and do what I can to help the team.”
In back-to-back games, Matthews has put the team on his back and has been the main reason why they’re 2-0 to start the season. Despite it being a rocky start for the rest of the team, seeing this revival and his best again is definitely something the Maple Leafs need if they want to remain a strong contender.
Matthews’ Early Dominance
Despite the “struggles” he faced last season, Matthews was excelling in other areas of the game, showing his playmaking and 200-foot game. However, now that his shot, power and accuracy is back, he’s back to being a major triple threat with his offense. At five-on-five, Matthews is already posting an expected goals for percentage of 60.80 and a high danger chances for percentage of 83.33. A small sample, but it shows Matthews’ dominance in the offensive zone. It all goes back to how he scored his 300th career goal.
As is the case with Matthews on the power play, he’s on his off side waiting for a potential opportunity to tee up a one-timer. Mitch Marner was looking for John Tavares in front for a deflection. However, Tavares manages to deflect the puck, with Matthews being in the right spot to receive the puck on his stick. As soon as he gets it, he doesn’t hesitate and quickly releases the puck over the glove of Montreal Canadiens goaltender Jake Allen.
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There were moments last season where Matthews was in the that exact spot with a glorious opportunity to score. But, there were times when the puck would sometimes jump on his stick or the accuracy wasn’t quite there. He seemed to have rotten luck on the high-quality chances. Everything that makes Matthews’ wrist shot so lethal was on display with the swiftness and power behind it. The same thing happened on his first goal against the Minnesota Wild.
Marner goes on the forecheck and regains possession of the puck off of a forced turnover. As he gets control, Matthews is already making himself available on the cross-seam pass. Once again, he’s able to quickly catch and release the puck in the slot over the glove of Filip Gustavsson. Matthews’ shot is even just as deceptive down low as he has two goals on an impossible angle. Both goals that were scored from the goal line weren’t in tight on the net. They were from far out below the faceoff circle making it even more difficult and challenging. The way he changed the angle of his shot is very impressive to say the least.
More is in Store
While the on-pace goal number isn’t realistic and his 46.2 shooting percentage isn’t sustainable, this torrid start to the season from Matthews shouldn’t surprise anyone. This is expected and fans should expect to see more of it. When he is on top of his game, he’s difficult to stop and he is definitely showing his very best. Now that he’s 100% healthy, revitalized and just as lethal and deceptive as ever, we are potentially witnessing another strong goal scoring performance from Matthews.
While 60 goals may seem like a safe bet for him at this point, it’s not entirely impossible for him to go beyond that mark. If he continues at this rate, it’s very much in range. With his torrid start, he’s going to light the lamp often, but it may be on a level that we haven’t seen in a long time.
Statistics from Natural Stat Trick, NHL and Hockey Reference.