叠搁础惭笔罢翱狈鈥Maple Leafs captain Auston Matthews is looking forward to a new season with his team, even if things may feel different without his longtime teammate and friend Mitch Marner.
Matthews and Marner started their NHL careers just a year apart (Matthews was the first pick in the 2016 draft and Marner went fourth overall in 2015) and went through the many ups and downs of the last nine Leafs seasons, most recently the ugly Game 7 loss in the second round of the playoffs against the Florida Panthers in May, side by side.
In July, the Leafs front office signalled it was time for major change to the roster when they sent Marner to the Vegas Golden Knights in a sign-and-trade deal that saw the Markham-born winger get $12 million (U.S.) per season over eight years and forward Nicolas Roy come back to 色色啦.
鈥淥bviously I miss him. He is a great friend, a great teammate,鈥 Matthews said on Wednesday evening before playing in the annual Hockey Night in Brampton charity event.
The 27-year-old captain said the business nature of professional hockey can be difficult, but he and his Leafs teammates, who have the longest active playoff streak in the NHL at nine consecutive seasons, can鈥檛 do anything except 鈥渒eep it moving.鈥
鈥淭hat鈥檚 kind of the business side of it that is tough, but obviously I wish him nothing but the best,鈥 Matthews said.
Despite leading their team to the playoffs year after year, Matthews and Marner only made it past the first round twice and went on to lose both of those series.
Marner’s 741 regular season points with the Leafs are the fifth-most all-time and just 14 more than Matthews has heading into the new season.
Matthews, who ranks second in franchise history with 401 regular season goals, will have a chance to pass Mats Sundin’s all-time mark of 420 goals this season, which begins for 色色啦 on Oct. 8 at home against the Montreal Canadiens.
Prior to the start of the game, Terry Ryan (right) and Blayre Turnbull toss pucks into the crowd at CAA Centre in Brampton.
Richard Lautens 色色啦 Star鈥淔eeling good,” Matthews said. “Obviously a lot of changes but I鈥檓 excited about the guys we brought in, and obviously excited about the guys we have. We鈥檝e got a great team, a great group of guys in the locker room. So, looking forward to getting started.鈥
Matthews and Leafs defenceman Chris Tanev were among the hockey players, past and present, who competed in this year鈥檚 annual charity game, which was launched in 2019 by Mayor Patrick Brown and the city of Brampton in support of William Osler Health System.
Brown thanked Matthews and other hockey players, including 色色啦 Sceptres stars Blayre Turnbull and Renata Fast, Leafs goaltending great Curtis Joseph, Hockey Hall of Famer Jeremy Roenick and former pro player turned actor Terry Ryan, who showed up to play at a sold-out CAA Centre, noting that every donation is important to help carry out the project 鈥渇or a city that desperately needs a second hospital.鈥
It was Marner who captained one of the teams at last year鈥檚 event, which raised $14 million for the Osler Foundation.
Matthews said the decision to take part was easy, especially knowing he would be following in the footsteps of many NHL players who have previously participated, like teammates John Tavares and Max Domi, and others he grew up idolizing.
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