Toronto Maple Leafs captain Auston Matthews has been an inconsistent feature in the lineup this season. However, that hasn’t hindered the team’s ability to control and win games. Furthermore, the Leafs have thrived without Matthews, despite being a three-time Rocket Richard Trophy winner. Players are forced to come out of their shells and add that extra effort when one of the team’s best players is out of the lineup. A handful of players have shined in Matthews’ absence, especially right winger Mitch Marner.
It’s interesting that without Matthews, the Maple Leafs rarely struggle. Toronto’s all-time record without the superstar centre is 43-23-2. Their latest victory came against the Detroit Red Wings in a 5-2 win on Friday night. There are a lot of factors that made this an impressive win for the Leafs. This was Detroit’s first game under their new head coach, Todd McLellan. Typically, teams play with extra drive and motivation in front of a new coach. It’s called the “new coach bump,” and it wasn’t in play for the Red Wings. Also, this was the first game back from the Christmas break for both teams. Toronto was ready to return to action and started on time, leading 5-0 at one point.
The Maple Leafs remained a threatening offensive team as they always have been. But, how are they doing it without Matthews?
No Matthews, No Problem
This season, the Maple Leafs are 8-4-0 without Matthews. Some of those losses came against great teams, including the Florida Panthers and the Winnipeg Jets. However, they’ve also defeated great teams like the Washington Capitals, Edmonton Oilers and a shutout against the Vegas Golden Knights, a top-three team in the NHL. When the captain isn’t in the lineup, the Leafs put on display a ‘next man up’ mentality. Toronto has several stars in their team and handles the workload just fine without the former Hart Trophy winner.
William Nylander has been one of the best goalscorers in the NHL this season. The Swede is tied for second among the league’s top scorers with Kirill Kaprizov and one behind leader Leon Draisaitl. He’s seemed to have taken the role of the go-to goalscorer for Toronto. And with every passing season, it seems that he only gets better.
Former captain John Tavares has proved this season that age is just a number. The 34-year-old has 36 points in 35 games, providing two helpers in Toronto’s latest win. There were talks of the veteran centreman to drop down to a third-line role this season for the Leafs. However, Tavares had no interest in that and proved that he’s more than a depth scorer for Toronto. Whenever Matthews has been absent, Tavares is the next guy to move up in the lineup as the first-line centre. Head coach Craig Berube couldn’t have asked for more from Tavares.
While Nylander and Tavares have been pulling their weight when Matthews is out, Marner has been thriving.
Marner Taking Control
In the offseason, all of the hockey world knew that this season was a huge one for Marner. Several fans had turned on him and expected the team to make a trade. Going into a contract year, there was a lot of pressure for Marner to perform this season, and there always will be until after the playoffs. However, up to this point in the season, Marner has been wonderful for Toronto and has shined in Matthews’ absence.
Marner is coming off a natural hat trick against the Red Wings at Little Caesars Arena. This was his third career hat trick and the second time he scored three or more goals on Detroit’s home ice. This season, the winger has 13 goals, 10 of which have come in games without Toronto’s captain. Fans question if Marner is a better player on a separate line from Matthews. Marner’s instinct as a playmaker is to find his partner in crime who will go down as one of the best goalscorers in league history. However, maybe he forces the play too much and forgets that he can drive plays as much as anybody else in the NHL.
As Matthews will not play against the Capitals on Saturday, it’ll be interesting to see what tricks Marner will have up his sleeve.
Main Photo Credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images
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