Will Auston Matthews Score 60 Goals Again?: NHL Odds, Props
It will be hard for Auston Matthews to top the season he had last year, but the 25-year-old is only just entering the prime of his career and he is years away from slowing down. It was a record setting year for Matthews, who hit the 50-goal plateau for the first time in his career. He became just the fourth player in franchise history to record 50 goals in a single season and the first since Dave Andreychuk in 1993-94. Matthews also set a franchise record for the fewest games needed to hit 50, doing so in 62.
The Arizona native finished the year with a franchise-record 60 goals, winning the Rocket Richard, Hart and Ted Lindsay trophies. He became the first NHL player to hit the 60-goal mark since Steven Stamkos in 2011-12. Can he do it again?
Stats Facts
In six NHL seasons, Matthews has proven to not just be a consistent scorer, but the best scorer. His 259 goals in 407 games since 2016-17 is the most of any NHL player, beating out players like Alex Ovechkin, Leon Draisaitl and Connor McDavid, all of whom played more games in that span. Matthews scored in 41 of the 73 games he played last season, with 34 of those goals coming in multi-goal games. If you want to know how vital Matthews is to Toronto’s offence, consider this. The Leafs scored 312 goals in the regular season last year, meaning Matthews contributed nearly 20 per cent of the offence by himself.
Another positive trend that could signal Matthews hitting 60 again is his career goals per 60 minutes average. Matthews finished his rookie season with a 1.7 G/60 average in all situations. That number has improved every single season, with his average at 2.4 G/60 last year. In fact, statistically Matthews was actually on pace to reach 60 goals in 2020-21 before the season was shortened because of COVID.
The Marner-Bunting Factor
A huge factor in Matthews hitting 60 goals will be continued chemistry with linemates Mitch Marner and Michael Bunting. The trio were consistently ranked among the best lines in the NHL last season and were major contributors to Toronto’s offence. The Maple Leafs’ goals-for percentage dropped nearly 15 per cent when the Matthews-Marner-Bunting line wasn’t on the ice and their expected goals-for percentage dropped 14 per cent without them at five-on-five. Bank on this line continuing to dominate in Year 2 and Matthews continuing to score.
