Auston Matthews is very close to making Maple Leafs history, and with that, it seems his fate is sealed with the team because he has no reason to leave now.
When the Toronto Maple Leafs step into the Calgary Saddledome (now Scotiabank Saddledome) they are going to be riding a four-game win streak and coming off a huge 7-2 drubbing of the Edmonton Oilers to kick off their Western road trip off right. But things won't be easy as the Flames are a scrappy team who just recently put down the reigning Stanley Cup Champions.
A big story coming into the game though focuses on Toronto's captain Auston Matthews, as he has the chance to make some history on Monday night. Sitting at 799 career points, he only needs one more to become the fastest to 800 points in Maple Leafs franchise history.
Matthews making history all but assures he's going nowhere
That would push him past Darryl Sittler, who did it in 742 games. Meanwhile, Matthews has the chance to accomplish that milestone in only his 703rd game, and with how the momentum has shifted of late - it feels like a matter of when, not if, he'll get that point tonight.
It's just another tally in the record books for the former first overall pick and with how much debate there has been recently about whether he wants to stay or not, this milestone should certainly help his decision.
How so? Well, Matthews is currently riding a hot streak we haven't seen in years, and while he isn't scoring at the pace he had, he's become a much more well-rounded player overall. He reportedly wants to stick around so long as the team keeps winning, and he's gotta be impressed this year.
Matthews has 19 points in 13 games (9 goals) and has more 4-point games already this season than he had the entire two years under Craig Berube. He's faster, his shot is quicker, and he's already sitting at seven power-play points - he had 12 all of last year.
He went from having a team who was throwing out a mishmash of players every night with no real direction, to having a group of guys who are all playing for each other.
Toronto's support pieces are convincing Matthews he can win it all
The fourth line resurgence this season even has to get him excited, as he's finally got some modicum of protection from his teammates.
Matthews has never had the level of support throughout the lineup, and he has no high-pressure defensive responsibilities - letting him focus on offense. He doesn't need to take defensive zone face-offs because Colton Sissons, Nick Paul, and Teddy Blueger are there too.
Not to mention that Zack MacEwen and Brandon Duhaime have no issues throwing down when needed or stepping up in tough situations. This isn't a David Kampf/Calle Jarnkrok scenario anymore.
Then you have potentially the biggest reason that Matthews may end up staying which is Easton Cowan. Gavin McKenna aside, Matthews just heaped huge praise on Cowan and his maturity, and reading between the lines you can see that he may have found his Mitch Marner replacement for good.
But unlike the lineups that included Marner, this is a team who has a true purpose and is dedicated to winning. Besides, when was the last time you saw Matthews show this level of passion - in October nonetheless:
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You'd have thought Toronto just scored a last-minute game-winner in Game 7 of the Conference Finals with that reaction. No, it was a regular-season game against New York.
It's a much different environment now for Matthews than it was a year ago, and while there are still some kinks to work out, this is quite possibly the best lineup of talent he's had alongside him since being drafted.
Good thing it's starting to work out too, because Matthews can seal his fate even further come this summer and extend in Toronto for the rest of his career.
Do you think Auston Matthews will be a Maple Leaf for the rest of his career?
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