If the Toronto Maple Leafs are going to turn this season around, Auston Matthews is the key. His play has been nowhere close to his standards for the last year and a half, and the captain needs to figure things out if he wants to lead this team to a Stanley Cup.
But there are lots of things going wrong. Fixing Matthews isn’t a one-step solution. Multiple changes are going to have to be made to get him right again.
So, now that it’s the holiday season, let’s figure out what Matthews really needs for Christmas.
A new head coach
Step one of solving Matthews’ problems is bringing in a new coach who understands how to best utilize the captain.
Under Sheldon Keefe, Matthews played less against top competition and was able to feast on weaker matchups. David Kampf was the guy playing the toughest minutes, leaving Matthews up against second or third lines.
Under Craig Berube, Matthews is now getting the toughest matchups. He’s always playing against top competition, trying to score, but also trying to neutralize the other teams’ best guys. It’s my opinion that this is completely backwards. Matthews is good enough defensively, or at least he has been in the past, but his greatest strength has obviously always been his scoring. And by throwing him out against top competition, he can’t find his spots in the offensive zone nearly as often.
A new set of eyes would hopefully spot this issue. Even if Matthews were fully healthy and himself (which we’ll get to), his deployment would still be baffling and would still hurt his production. The best offensive player on the team should not also handle the most defensive responsibility.
And what’s the point of having a Nic Roy checking line if they aren’t the ones tasked with shutting down top competition?
Back surgery
There’s no way Matthews is fully healthy. NHL players don’t hit an aging wall and become a shell of themselves at 28 years old. His top speed is down, his shot is off, and his skating is visually worse than it used to be.
It’s speculation that the problem is his back, but at this point, it’s almost certainly the case. His visit with a specialist last year was due to back issues, and we’ve seen him wince in pain after getting cross-checked in the numbers. It’s definitely his back.
So, what he needs to do is bite the bullet and finally see a surgeon. He can’t continue playing at this level and expect any sort of success, not to mention the apathy fans will continue to feel towards him if he doesn’t get better.
I know the Olympics are coming up, but in a lost season, the time is now. Celebrate Christmas by finally fixing your health issues, Auston, and come back better than ever. If you don’t, and continue playing like this, Leafs Nation is going to turn on you fast. That process has already started.
A new winger
Losing Mitch Marner stings, but what makes it so much worse is the fact that the Leafs have absolutely no one to even try to fill his shoes. Max Domi has been terrible all year, Matthew Knies has quietly been pretty dreadful, and William Nylander needs to be anchoring his own line for any kind of success.
I know the Leafs do not have the assets to make a big trade, but it would really help to find a capable top-six winger to throw beside Matthews. He needs some sort of playmaker who can carry the puck, and there’s just no one who can do it right now.
Maybe Brandon Carlo can bring you a solid winger. Maybe Oliver Ekman-Larsson could. But the Leafs are clearly missing one good piece up front to help Matthews get the puck in dangerous areas. He can’t drive play like he used to, probably because of his back, and a transporter would really help him.
If Matthews doesn’t improve soon, fans are going to get really loud. Whether it’s putting off surgery until after the Olympics or quitting on the coach, what he’s doing right now is not good enough.
But there has to be a solution somewhere, and I think following these three steps would do the job.
