"Giving him a Puncher's chance to get to 70" - NHL analyst opines how Auston Matthews's 70-goal hunt will reach its climax
In Monday's game against the Penguins, Auston Matthews netted a goal in the Maple Leafs' 3-2 win at Scotiabank Arena. The goal brought Matthews' total to 65 for the season, leading the NHL in goals scored.
With five games remaining in the season, Matthews reaching the 70-goal landmark is now more achievable than ever before.
TSN analyst Martin Biron opined on Auston Matthews' pursuit of the 70-goal milestone with Jay Onrait on SportsCentre.
Biron mentioned that it won't be easy for Matthews, but highlighted that when the Leafs forward heats up, he has the potential to net multiple goals in a single game, which could significantly reduce the number of goals needed in the remaining games.
The analyst expressed confidence in Matthews' abilities to achieve this feat:
"It's going to be tough, right? The thing with Matthews, though, is that once he gets hot, he can get a hat trick, and all of a sudden, you only need two goals and the remaining four games. "So I think Matthews has the ability to get it done. Well, it'd be a lot of pressure. Absolutely."- Biron said
Biron also noted the impressive aspect of Auston Matthews' 65th goal, emphasizing that it was a rare long-distance strike from him this season. Despite the challenge, Biron reckons that Matthews has a real chance to reach 70 goals if he can have a game where he scores multiple goals.
Martin Biron's analysis suggests that Matthews would need a standout performance with two or three goals in a single game to increase his chance of hitting the 70-goal mark:
"It's just impressive to even get the 65 I'm giving him a puncher's chance to get the 70 if he gets out in one game," Biron added."He needs a multi-goal game at some point, not one goal every game. He needs two or three goals in one game, and then he can get it done."
Auston Matthews helps the Leafs beat Penguins in OT
The Toronto Maple Leafs came out on top of the Pittsburgh Penguins with a 3-2 win in overtime on Monday night at Scotiabank Arena.
At 18:06 of the first period, Rickard Rakell put the Penguins up 1-0. Coming into the second period, Matthew Knies tied it for the Leafs after scoring on TJ Brodie's assist at the 5:36 mark.
Auston Matthews scored his 65th of the season to give the Maple Leafs a 2-1 lead at 1:22 of the third period. Drew O'Connor tied it 2-2 for the Pens at 13:38 of the third period before Jake McCabe scored the winner for the Leafs 1:30 into overtime.
Matthews and the Leafs next face the New Jersey Devils on Tuesday.