Over 30 games into his NHL career with the Toronto Maple Leafs,

how does Auston Matthews season compare to the rookie

seasons of Jonathan Toews and Anze Kopitar.
Auston Matthews has come as advertised for the Toronto Maple Leafs with the
first overall pick leading the team in scoring. Before being drafted into the NHL,
scouts and former coaches could not contain their excitement when talking about
the Arizona native including former head coach Marc Crawford.
Advertisement

Meet the (Super) Sensors that are Powering the Industrial

Internet
Ad by General Electric

Ive had some really good players at a young age. Whether it was Peter
Forsberg, Jamie Benn, the Sedins, Anze Kopitar, this guy has better stick skills,
and better puck protection skills than any of those guys had at the same age. He
really, really, has a great ability to carry his speed through the neutral zone and
hes difficult to defend against.
He will translate into a No. 1 centre in the National Hockey League for sure and
were hoping that he continues to progress, he continues to improve and he
continues to help our team. He loves to win, he doesnt like to lose I can tell you
that much, hes one of those people who has excellence at the forefront of
everything that hes about, and as I said earlier thats what all NHL clubs are
looking for. This is a guy you can certainly build your franchise around.
This is why Matthews strong play this season should not come as a big surprise
and he has been rewarded with the most ice-time among Leafs forwards by head
coach Mike Babcock. Matthews impact not only reflects on the score sheet but
by having the best possession numbers on team, leading the team in takeaways
with 31 and with his strong play at even strength. Not to mention that he is doing
all of this with fellow rookie line mates Zach Hyman and William Nylander (as
well as Connor Brown at times). The only place that Matthews has not had an
impact yet is on the penalty kill because he has not seen time on the penalty kill.
You may recall recently an article published by Gary Lawless earlier this month
when he about how Patrik Laine will end up being a superior player to
Matthews. That article got a lot of attention and some comments from Leafs
fans. Instead of making a comparison between two players with different playing
styles it is better to compare players to others with similar styles of play. Looking
at Matthews rookie season, how does it stacks up to the rookie season of other

players that he drew comparisons to, more specifically Jonathan Toews and Anze
Kopitar.

NEXT: Making the Comparison to Kopitar and Toews

Anze Kopitar
Kopitars first season in the league came in 2006-07 with the Los Angeles Kings
who were coached by a familiar name in Marc Crawford. He was third on the
team in scoring with 20 goals, 41 assists and 61 points in 72 games playing an
average of 20:32 TOI. Unfortunately faceoff and possession numbers were not
recorded in the 2006-07 season so there is no way of making that comparison
unless we move on the the 2007-08 season.
In his rookie season Kopitar played a lot with Mike Cammalleri and Alex
Frolov who were both in their fourth seasons at the time that Kopitar made his
debut in the NHL. Both players achieved career highs when they played with
Kopitar with Cammalleri scoring 34 goals, 46 assists, 80 points in 81 games and
Frolov had 35 goals, 36 assists, 71 points in 82 games. Matthews is not playing
with established goal scorers and is generating the majority of his scoring
chances as he is in the top five in shots. When you look at Matthews and Kopitar
the comparison can be made in their size and defensive awareness on the ice
but it is tough to say that they are the same type of player.

Jonathan Toews
When Toews made his debut in 2007-08 with the Chicago Blackhawks he was
not the only rookie making his debut for the Blackhawks. In 2007 the Blackhawks
selected Patrick Kane first overall a year after Toews was picked third overall
and both would make their debut with a Chicago team that was looking to move
forward in their rebuild. Toews and Kane had an immediate impact in as the
Blackhawks improved 17 points in the standings. Kane led the team in scoring
with 72 points in 82 games while Toews finished third with 54 points in 64 games.
Looking back at the impact that Kane and Toews had in their rookie seasons for
the Blackhawks it is hard not to draw comparisons to what Matthews and fellow
rookie Mitch Marner are doing for the Leafs. Marner and Kane are gifted
offensive talents that do something great every time they have the puck.
Matthews and Toews both have lethal shots impact the game in many other
areas. Matthews still has work to do if he wants to contribute defensively like
Toews did in his rookie season. Toews was strong on the faceoff winning them at
a 53.2% rate and contributed to the penalty kill which is something Matthews is
still working on but his work ethic and skill should get him there sooner rather

than later. So it is safe to say that Matthews is more comparable to Toews then
he is to Kopitar if we were to compare him with both players.

Looking at Rookies From the Past 10 Years

The impressive thing about Matthews is that while his game is reminiscent of
current NHL players like Toews and Kopitar, there are many other players that
Matthews reminds you of with the many things he does well. You can say that the
way he uses his size and speed is similar to Jamie Benn, the way he goes to the
net and is able to score in close is like Sidney Crosby and the way he navigates
past defenders with the puck is similar to John Tavares. It is what made
Matthews worthy of a first overall pick and why the Leafs are fortunate to have
him given what he has been able to accomplish.
Looking back at the past 10 years there have been great performances from
rookies where only three rookies scored more than 82 points in a season and
only four averaged more than a point per game. Alex Ovechkin and Sidney
Crosby were the last rookies to score more than 100 points in a season, Evgeni
Malkin was the last rookie to score more than 80 points in a season and Connor
McDavid was the last rookie to score more than a point per game. With the way
scoring has been on the decline in the NHL it would be tough to see a rookie
score like Crosby and Ovechkin did 2005-06 although McDavid had a shot at it
before he got injured.
While Matthews is not scoring at a point per game pace that Crosby, Ovechkin,
Malkin or McDavid, he is producing at a rate that puts him in good company.
Here is a chart with the performances from rookies in the past 10 seasons and
where they rank in points per game.
While Matthews is not putting up the best numbers in regards to points per game
he has put up strong numbers when it comes to goals per game and shots per
game as it is comparable to what Crosby did in his rookie season.