Auston Matthews, basically a Toronto Maple Leafs legend three months into his career.
The 19-year-old has 13 goals after another tally Tuesday, making it seven in nine games after a 13-game drought. He's on pace to score 38, which would put him in some exclusive company:
Though his #Leafs have gone a bit cold like the weather, Auston Matthews has heated up- on pace to be among these great teen rookie seasons pic.twitter.com/f8FEwpPqKa
— StatsCentre (@StatsCentre) December 14, 2016
Worth mentioning: Patrik Laine's on pace for 44, and that clearly means he's better than Matthews and is the forward Toronto should have drafted. It's good to have that debate settled and out of the way.
Almost unprecedented
Putting Matthews' play through the first quarter of his career into context with respect to the Maple Leafs, the folks at Hockey Reference let the world know Wednesday that since 1987 - as far back as the website's data goes - only one other Toronto rookie has been as prolific at putting the puck into the net through his first 28 games: Nikolai Borschevsky, in 1992.
| Rank | Leafs Rookie (Age) | Year | G in 28 GP | P in 28 GP |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Borschevsky (28) | 1992 | 13 | 24 |
| 1 | Matthews (19) | 2016 | 13 | 22 |
| 2 | Sergei Berezin (25) | 1996 | 11 | 19 |
| 3 | Daniel Marois (20) | 1988 | 10 | 19 |
| 3 | William Nylander (19-20) | 2016 | 10 | 22 |
| 4 | Alex Steen (21) | 2005 | 9 | 19 |
| 5 | Tyler Bozak (23) | 2010 | 7 | 21 |
| 5 | Mitch Marner (19) | 2016 | 7 | 20 |
| 5 | Guy Larose (24) | 1992 | 7 | 9 |
| 5 | Derek Laxdal (22) | 1988 | 7 | 8 |
Notes:
- Going back 29 years, all three of Toronto's current star rookies - Matthews, Mitch Marner, and William Nylander - are in the top 10 in goals scored through 28 games. These kids are tasked with leading the Maple Leafs out of the darkness and while it's as early as early gets, so far so good.
- Borschevsky came out of nowhere in 1992-1993, scoring 34 goals in 78 games as a 28-year-old rookie on a formidable Toronto team powered by Doug Gilmour, Glenn Anderson, and Wendel Clark. Remember: Matthews is only 19.
- About Clark: He scored 34 as a 19-year-old rookie in 1985-86, a Maple Leafs freshman record. Unfortunately, game logs for his maiden season aren't available online, so figuring out how many goals he scored in his first 28 games involves far too much research than is socially acceptable.
- Interestingly enough, Borschevsky finished with 34 in '92-93, as well. Matthews, as mentioned, is projected to score 38.
- In '92-93, teams averaged 3.63 goals per game - hockey was very different back then. In 2016-17, that number is down to 2.72, making Matthews' exploits more impressive.
- For the uneducated: In '92-93, Gilmour had 127 points in 82 games and finished tied for seventh in NHL scoring. Forget different, hockey was practically a different sport 25 years ago.
Borschevsky had 14 goals through his first 30 contests, if you're looking for a nice round number with respect to games played. And Matthews is hoping to equal that mark Thursday, in game No. 29, when Toronto hosts the team No. 34 grew up loving - the Arizona Coyotes.
"I'm really looking forward to it," Matthews said, writes the Toronto Sun's Lance Hornby. "It's fun to play your hometown team. It will be pretty cool after watching guys such as Shane Doan growing up. He's still playing. That will be pretty special."
Matthews, the kid born in San Ramon, Calif., whose mother is Mexican, who grew up in the Sonoran Desert rooting for the Coyotes, is already making history in Toronto. And for once, it seems, the Maple Leafs got it right.
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