Watch: Auston Matthews’ elite playmaking on display with viral Olympic assist vs Slovakia

When Auston Matthews was named captain for the United States men's Olympic hockey team, there was a lot of criticism over his leadership qualities, and the fact he couldn't get the job done before -- so maybe a new voice would have been better.

But he's listened to that negativity and fuelled it into an incredible tournament where he's posted six points in five games while also playing elite defense and earning the admiration of both his teammates and head coach (as to be expected).

However, one underrated addition to his skillset is his ability to distribute the puck, and for years he had someone by his side to do it. Now that he is taking more of a complete role, playmaking is a huge factor in his game now.

Which is why the latest play he made was downright unbelievable considering the dexterity and hands necessary to pull it off:

Matthews was skating up ice when a flying puck came near him, and in a one fell swoop managed to turn his stick blade and send a perfect tip pass to Matt Boldy, who fed it back to the captain as he entered the zone.

While a tipped pass isn't normally something to pay attention to, it's the poise and ease in which Matthews did it that is drawing heads.

Oh...he did this with one hand too.

That level of hand-eye coordination and wrist strength is incredible to say the least, and is legitimately turning heads because frankly -- not a lot of people expected this at all:

With Matthews motivated to end the US' over 40-year gold medal drought, not to mention the chance to rewrite his own legacy as someone who can get it done when it matters; if he keeps this up he'll become undeniable.

Everything comes to a head on Sunday morning, and with Matthews as focused and geared up as ever, all it might take is one more deflection to make history.

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