Toronto Maple Leafs: Auston Matthews’ push for 50 goals in good shape

After scoring a hat trick in the Toronto Maple Leafs’ win over the New Jersey Devils, Auston Matthews continues to make his push for his first 50-goal season.

It’s no secret that at the centre of the Toronto Maple Leafs recent success under Sheldon Keefe, Auston Matthews is playing some of the most dominant hockey of his career.

While many were marvelling at his second career hat trick against the New Jersey Devils, Matthews has had many opportunities including last week against the Winnipeg Jets. It broke the streak of 27 games with two goals before getting that elusive trifecta.

Of course, Sheldon Keefe should receive some credit for Matthews’ breakout considering he finally decided to mix things up and put his franchise centre with Mitch Marner and Zach Hyman.

"“I really like what we see from that trio with Matthews,” Keefe told Sportsnet’s Luke Fox. “It makes sense to me in a lot of ways, in terms of the way one sees the ice and passes and the way one finishes. But Mitch and [Hyman] were very successful with John there as well. We have to weigh that and, again, it has a lot to do with how things fall into place underneath them.”"

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Last season, Matthews was performing at a career-high rate before missing time with an injury and for most of the season, he’s been performing well over a 50-goal pace. As of Jan. 15, he is on pace for 59 goals and 99 points which would make him the first player to do so in the Blue and White since Dave Andreychuk.

What’s pretty intriguing about Matthews’ play is how he is performing at another level at home while just under a point per game on the road. Generally in his career, his splits have been nearly even in that department (137 points in 130 home games vs. 125 points in 129 road games) but this season it is clear he is enjoying far more success at Scotiabank Arena with 27 goals and 39 points in 23 games.

This is the type of play the Leafs were expecting out of Matthews when they signed him to a five-year deal worth $11.634 million per season. He leafs the NHL with 25 goals at even strength and with the power play improving under Keefe, he has a chance to surpass the 12 he had last season on the man advantage and continue his battle with David Pastrnak for the Rocket Richard trophy.

It also doesn’t help that Matthews is now playing 20:13 time on ice per game this season which is a major improvement over the 18:33 he had last season which was his career-high.

Having a playmaker like Marner is indeed an upgrade over William Nylander who is benefitting from playing with John Tavares as he is on pace for a career-high 35 goals. Not bad for a player making $6.9 million.

While the debate around the Leafs’ thin defence continues to be the main topic of conversation in Toronto, it appears the team will continue to lean on their offensive weapons to get them by in the meantime.

How impressed have you been with Matthews this season? Can he reach 50 goals? Let s know in the comments below.