Auston Matthews saved his best for last in last night's overtime thriller against the Winnipeg Jets. While Matthews didn't have his best game last night, his best period, by far, was the overtime period, which ultimately culminated in the Rocket Richard Trophy leader scoring the game winner.
In a tight scoreless game that went the distance without a single goal through sixty minutes, someone was bound to play hero for their team in securing a second point. Matthews potted his 39th goal of the season and in doing so, he inched closer to a longstanding Leafs record.
Nicholas Robertson made a few elite plays leading to Matthews overtime winner. He originally stopped a pass mid-air pass with his stick that led to Robertson keeping the puck in the offensive zone. He kept the puck away from two Jets players, twisting and turning to hold onto the puck, made a backhand pass to Rielly so he could change, and Rielly made a wonderful pass towards the net for Matthews to tip home.
With Matthews' overtime winning goal last night, he is inching closer towards the Maple Leafs franchise leader, the beloved Mats Sundin, in OT goals by a Leaf. Sundin holds the record with 14 overtime goals while Matthews sits only three back with 11 overtime goals after his latest tally.
There is a good possibility that we could see Matthews break this franchise record sometime during this season, with the 2x Rocket Richard Trophy winner on pace for a career season in goals! We all know Matthews will break the record, the question will be, when does he do it? Also, how long does he keep it with William Nylander also nipping at his heels and signed 4 years longer than Matthews?
