Maple Leafs: Remember the “Three-Day Rule” When it Comes to Auston Matthews

Maple Leafs fans and the Toronto media need to remember the “Three-Day Rule” when it comes to Auston Matthews.

Speaking from personal experience, the best way to ruin a blossoming relationship is to smother the other person way too soon.  Many of us have had that amazing first date, but instead of playing it cool we end up blowing it before the relationship could get going because we didn’t stay true to the “universal dating code.”

We just couldn’t stick to the “dating code” rule of waiting three days before you contact the other person. Instead, you start calling or texting the other person the next day looking to arrange the second date immediately and odds are you never ended up hearing from that person ever again.

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The Toronto Maple Leafs fan base and media pundits alike could be well served to apply the “three-day rule” to any conversation or dialogue regarding Auston Matthews. The Maple Leafs organization should consider imposing a rule that no media is allowed to speak about Matthews performance until three days after it has happened. That way, the relationship with Leafs nation and the Toronto media will be able to slowly blossom into something special instead of some tequila infused one night of debauchery that you end up looking back on with regret.

The Toronto media has at times been guilty of ruining a young Maple Leafs player and his confidence in the same manner as an overzealous dater looking to speed up the relationship way too soon. Look no further than the long list of Leafs that started out with promise, but weren’t allowed the opportunity to grow as a player and person due to the intense media scrutiny in Toronto.

Case in point with the likes of Russ Courtnall, Luke Richardson, Scott Pearson, Rob Pearson, Drake Berehowsky and a dozen more. All of those players were high first round draft picks that fizzled in Toronto, mostly due to the unrealistic expectations placed on them way too soon by the media and fan base in Toronto.

I think it is extremely important that we as a fan base exercise great caution and examine what should be some realistic expectations for Auston Matthews in his first season in the NHL. This young man is obviously special, but it’s important to remember that he is still just 19 years old. It’s also important to remember that he is allowed to make mistakes and to not expect him to be perfect every night.

Let’s examine the No. 1 overall draft picks from the past five years and see what they ended up doing in their first season in the NHL. Perhaps Leafs nation should use this as a bar of comparison for Matthews success this year instead of comparing him to Gretzky or Lemieux.

2011 – Ryan Nugent-Hopkins 62 GP, 18 G, 34 A, 52 Pts.

2012 – Nail Yakupov 48 GP, 17 G, 14 A, 31 Pts.

2013 – Nathan MacKinnon 82 GP, 24 G, 39 A, 63 Pts.

2014 – Aaron Ekblad 81 GP, 12 G, 27 A, 39 Pts.

2015 – Connor McDavid 45 GP, 16 G, 32 A, 48 Pts.

I know Leafs nation has been long suffering and deserves the opportunity to celebrate this amazing opening night performance by Matthews because they’ve had little else to celebrate since the days of Doug Gilmour.

Next: Auston Matthews Makes an Unforgettable Debut

Just remember that if we if allow this young man some space and breathing room that the likelihood will increase that we’ll have many more special evenings together. Let’s not suffocate the kid by calling on him three times a week to make the same things happen in order to make the Leafs relevant in the same manner as a possessive new boyfriend after just one date.

Leafs nation, remember the “three-day rule!”