2 days Ago
LOS ANGELES — The Toronto Maple Leafs weren’t sure it would count. Head coach Craig Berube thought it was 50-50. “It’s close,” Berube said.
“Very close.” John Tavares sat in the penalty box, hoping that somehow it would stand. Auston Matthews didn’t know what was going on initially, why his short-handed goal was being challenged by Jim Hiller, the head coach of the Los Angeles Kings and one-time assistant coach with the Leafs during Matthews’ first three NHL seasons.
Advertisement The goal, which tied the game at one, stood: Matthews’ stick was “not above the normal height of his shoulders when he contacted the puck,” the NHL ruled. It was only the second short-handed goal of Matthews’ NHL career. Both goals have come this season.
PAPI POTS IT! pic.twitter.com/hGKaEHmZMX — Toronto Maple Leafs (@MapleLeafs) March 30, 2025 The Leafs captain keeps finding ways to score, and contribute, amid a very unusual slump.
Matthews powered his team to a much-needed bounce-back effort in L.A. Not only did he tie the game at one with that short-handed goal, but he drew the penalty that led to the power play that Tavares scored on to give the Leafs the lead for good.
And that Tavares goal came on a rebound from a dangerous Matthews shot in the slot. Matthews blocked a shot for good measure while the Kings tried to score with an empty net, one of two he blocked in the game. He added eight shots in the victory, much-needed in the Atlantic Division title race, and won 70 percent of his faceoffs.
The Leafs captured nearly 70 percent of the expected goals in his five-on-five minutes. “I thought Papi was tremendous tonight,” Tavares said afterward. “Made some big plays and obviously (scored) a huge goal to tie it up and then drawing penalties and just having the puck glued on his stick.
And I think everyone else followed suit, winning battles, staying with it, competing hard.” Matthews, with 29 goals, is on the verge of his ninth straight 30-goal season even as he — the greatest five-on-five scorer in hockey — continues to struggle to put the puck in the net at five on five. Over his last 24 games, dating back to January 25, Matthews has scored a total of two five-on-five goals.
His last five goals have all come on special teams: Power-play goal Power-play goal Power-play goal Power-play goal Short-handed goal Advertisement The last five-on-five goal he scored, on March 15 against Ottawa, came after Senators goalie Linus Ullmark rushed out of his net for a loose puck, allowing Matthews to shoot it into an empty net. Matthews has never had a season quite like this before as a five-on-five scorer, not even close. Unlike Tavares, having the best shooting season of his NHL life , Matthews is enduring his worst five-on-five shooting season as a Leaf: Just under nine percent through 58 games.
His previous low was 11 percent. Last season, Matthews shot over 15 percent en route to a league-high 38 five-on-five goals. The same calibre of looks haven’t been there all season as he continues to grind his way through an apparent physical limitation.
Only two of his eight shots against the Kings came at five-on-five. His best look came on a wraparound chance that was stopped by Darcy Kuemper. It’s hard to overstate just what a wrecking ball Matthews had been at five-on-five before this season.
Consider that in his first eight NHL seasons, Matthews scored 51 goals more at five-on-five than anyone else. The next closest player was Connor McDavid. This season, Matthews ranks fifth on the Leafs with 12 five-on-five goals, trailing William Nylander (22), Matthew Knies (20), Tavares (17) and Bobby McMann (16).
He has only one more such goal than linemate Mitch Marner. That’s worrying for the Leafs as another high-stakes playoffs draws near. Yet, what’s becoming clear, amid all that, is that Matthews can still summon up something extra when his team needs it, even if it’s not a five-on-five goal.
His first season as a full-time penalty killer has yielded only so-so results. Just the threat of him out there, though, might make it worthwhile in the end, all the more so if he can score at a crucial time. (The extra minutes also add to his workload.
) Advertisement “I mean, he wins draws, he’s got a great stick, blocks shots — he does all the things right that you want on your penalty kill,” Berube said. Matthews nearly scored on a short-handed breakaway moments before he actually did beat Kuemper, who was 16-1-2 on home ice before the Leafs got him in regulation on Saturday. “We all know what a tremendous offensive player and goal scorer he is,” Tavares said, adding to his rave review of Matthews after the game.
“But he makes plays all around the ice and his hockey sense and his ability to strip guys and read plays, and the way he uses his body — he’s so good in so many different areas. That’s why he’s a catalyst and leader in every facet of the word for us.” — Stats and research courtesy of Natural Stat Trick, Hockey Reference, and Evolving Hockey (Top photo: Jayne Kamin-Oncea / Imagn Images).
