Maple Leafs Need More From Auston Matthews

The Toronto Maple Leafs need their leader to step up if they want to advance.

Toronto Maple Leafs center Auston Matthews skates with the puck against the Florida Panthers. / Nick Turchiaro-Imagn Images

After taking a 2-0 lead on the defending-champion Florida Panthers, the Toronto Maple Leafs find themselves on the back foot with the second-round series going back to ScotiaBank Arena tied at 2-2.

If the Maple Leafs are going to get out of this series and advance to the Eastern Conference Final for the first time since 2002, then they need several key players to step up. Their captain, chief among them.

Auston Matthews, a three-time Rocket Richard Trophy winner and arguably the best goal-scorer in the league today, hasn't been able to buy a goal in this series. Despite taking 32 shot attempts through four games, 14 of which were on goal, the 27-year-old has no goals and only three assists.

Going back further, Matthews has still yet to score a goal beyond the first round of the playoffs, as he was also shut out during the Maple Leafs' second-round loss to the Panthers in 2023.

While his defensive game has still been strong, Matthews knows he has to regain his scoring touch to help his team bounce back.

“I mean, the chances have been there,” Matthews said, per NHL.com. “I’ve just got to do a better job of bearing down on them.”

This season has been a challenging one for Matthews. The former Hart Trophy winner has battled an upper-body injury for months, which caused him to miss 15 games during the regular season and is still affecting him now as he opted not to participate in Sunday's morning skate. He also scored just 33 goals this season, the fewest of his NHL career largely due to the injury.

Even if he's not at 100 percent, however, Matthews getting back on the score sheet would be huge for morale, both for him and the team as a whole. In an absolute war of a series, Toronto's captain simply has to step up.

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