Receiving the slightest compliment from former Toronto Maple Leafs captain Mats Sundin should boost anyone’s confidence, but being described as the next franchise player of his former team? That’s a whole different animal.
The Leafs' all-time points leader was in Toronto yesterday for the NHL’s Alumni awards event and had an opportunity to discuss Auston Matthews’ red-hot start. Sundin didn’t hold back, giving pretty much the ultimate praise toward the rising superstar, insisting he’s going to be one of the future stars in the league. The Swede also touched on William Nylander’s contract situation and the rest of Toronto’s young core.
The American has slowed down over the past few games (the Leafs have scored just one goal in their past two games) but kicked his season off with a historical start. Matthews became just the fifth player in NHL history to record 10 goals through his team's first six contests, joining Mario Lemieux and Mike Bossy on the historic list. He's currently tied with Colorado Avalanche forward Mikko Rantanen for the league lead with 16.
As for Nylander, his future seems to be pretty up in the air at this point. The talented winger reportedly met with Kyle Dubas in Switzerland last week and has been practicing with Dornbirner EC of the Austrian Hockey League. Over the summer, Nylander insisted he’s looking for a long term deal and has clearly remained adamant about that to start the year.
Time will tell how the latter’s situation unfolds, but Matthews should feel darn good about receiving these kind of words from one of Toronto’s biggest legends.
