"Toronto Maple Leafs superstar Auston Matthews returns to his homeland tonight as the Leafs take on the Coyotes in Arizona. Local reporters were of course all about Matthews and asked head coach Mike Babcock how Matthews conquers playing in an intense market like Toronto. «It's like anything,» Babcock replied, «if the team's going to be no good and you're not going to play good, then it will be a tough place for you. But if you're going to be good and the team's going to be good, it can be an unbelievable spot.
«I don't know what it's like to be Auston at his age with what he's going through, but I think it has to be a pretty special place to be. The skill set comes with a burden I guess, but on the other side, it's got to be special being Auston Matthews.
«He has a great mom and dad, great roots, a good foundation, they keep him in line. It's important that everyone in your circle has to be strong, willing to tell you where you are getting out of line. He's a smart guy, he understands, he wants to be great. If you want to be great, that's every day, not once in awhile. He obviously picked that up early as a young man and brings that every day.»Playing in front of his hometown crowd and hopefully rested up after concussion issues, we should see a big game tonight from the Leafs phenom.
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