Keefe comments on what he believes was Matthews' best game of the season
The Leafs dominated the Winnipeg Jets last night in almost every aspect of the game, but no one looked more dominant than Auston Matthews, who may have played his best game of the season. After a sluggish first period where the Leafs gave up 16 shots, Matthews came out to start the second period on a mission, scoring a goal just 8 seconds in before adding a second one a couple of minutes later.
Matthews finished the game with 2 goals, 7 shots, 2 hits and 4 blocks in just over 17 minutes of ice time. Since the calendar turned to January, Matthews has 6 goals in 7 games and appears to be heating up - something that Sheldon Keefe mentioned post-game when he said that last night's game was the closest Matthews has looked to how he performed last season.
-Keefe on how well his superstar center performed against the Jets
The few games that Matthews had off due to the nagging injury and the flu bug last week have seemed to rejuvenate him a bit as he has been much more dominant since returning. He may not win a third straight Rocket Richard this season, but if I was in the Leafs' position, I would be ensuring he gets as much rest as possible down the stretch so that he is healthy when the playoffs start. We saw first-hand last night just how dominant a rested and healthy Matthews can be. We'll need that version of him in the postseason.
| POLL | ||
JANVIER 20 | 248 ANSWERS Keefe comments on what he believes was Matthews' best game of the season Will Matthews find a way to win his third straight Rocket Richard? | ||
| Yes | 48 | 19.4 % |
| No | 149 | 60.1 % |
| Rest in more important | 51 | 20.6 % |
| List of polls | ||
