Auston Matthews now has 18 goals in his first 35 games. You’ve probably seen this little tidbit going around:
There’s something else to Matthews’ goals too, though. Namely: he’s the one opening the scoring. Via the Elias Sports Bureau:
Matthews has scored 18 goals for the Leafs and nine of them have been the first goal of a game, and each of his last five goals have given Toronto a 1–0 lead. Matthews’ nine first goals are the most by an NHL player this season (Sidney Crosby is second with eight) and a single-season record for a Maple Leafs rookie.