Maple Leafs Insider Gives Worrying Update on Auston Matthews Amid Slow Start
The Toronto Maple Leafs are off to a slow start and will end the month of October last in the Atlantic Division. A key reason for their sluggish beginning is the struggles of captain Auston Matthews.
Matthews is considered one of, if not the best, goal scorers in the NHL. However, to begin the year, he has just 5 goals in 11 games. What’s more concerning is that he has only one five-on-five goal and has more empty-net goals than goals scored at even strength. It’s been a disappointing start for the star forward.
Maple Leafs insider Jonas Siegel of The Athletic provided a concerning update on Matthews, suggesting that the forward may still be dealing with an injury.
“Matthews has been less productive so far (0.45 goals and 0.73 points per game) than even last season when he played hurt from training camp (0.49 and 1.16),” Siegel wrote. “The production is one thing, which has been hurt in part by a flailing power play. Matthews hasn’t felt all that dangerous, either. A flood of goals like the 51 (!) in 50 games he once delivered at his apparent apex doesn’t appear imminent. Nor has he been able to impose his will on games like before.
“One possibility is that Matthews still isn’t all the way back physically. The speed and power he used to have through the neutral zone isn’t so overwhelming these days, nor, obviously, is the shot as potent.”
Matthews dealt with an injury last season that resulted in a specialized trip to Germany for evaluation. That injury hampered him throughout the year, and it’s possible he still isn’t fully healthy.
### Loss of Mitch Marner Has Impacted Matthews
Although Siegel believes Matthews may be injured, another important reason for his struggles is the loss of teammate Mitch Marner. Marner, a skilled playmaker, has been setting up Matthews for years.
Marner left this offseason to join the Vegas Golden Knights, and Siegel believes this departure has significantly impacted Matthews’ performance.
“A more clear-cut factor for the early struggles: the disappearance of Mitch Marner and the major impact that’s had on Matthews, offensively and defensively, amid a period of great instability at right wing,” Siegel added.
With Marner gone, Toronto has been shuffling the top line in an effort to find chemistry with Matthews.
### Maple Leafs Coach Sends Message to Team
Toronto’s slow start continued with a blowout loss to the Columbus Blue Jackets on Wednesday. Following the game, Maple Leafs coach Craig Berube was candid with his assessment, emphasizing that the team isn’t playing up to expectations.
“For me, we were complicating the game at times tonight. We got burned on it,” Berube said postgame. “We forced pucks when we didn’t need to and turned them over. They came at us, and as we’ve talked about, they’re a talented and good rush team. They capitalized on their opportunities. More than anything, that is what it boils down to. I felt like we were disconnected at times getting through the neutral zone. It cost us.”
The Maple Leafs will need to address these issues quickly if they hope to turn their season around and climb out of the Atlantic Division cellar.
https://heavy.com/sports/nhl/toronto-maple-leafs/insider-worrying-update-auston-matthews/
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