- Auston Matthews and Jack Roslovic are skating together again, more than a decade after their NTDP days
- Matthew Tkachuk, the third man on that junior line, has a rule about the celebration
- Read below for the full story and what Jim Hiller wants to see from Toronto’s top unit
Auston Matthews and Jack Roslovic had a nickname for themselves in junior, and Matthew Tkachuk has already laid down the ground rules for the reunion.
Roslovic has been on Matthews’ right wing through the first two days of Maple Leafs training camp. Asked Friday about their history together with USA Hockey’s National Team Development Program, Matthews brought up the old line name and the text he got from Tkachuk.
“We used to call ourselves ‘The Superman Line’ in junior and he told us if we played against them and scored and did the Superman celly he was going to kill one of us.”
Here’s Matthews on Friday:
The name itself had nothing to do with hockey. Roslovic traced it to an NFL quarterback.
“It was the Cam Newton era when he was ripping the jersey open. It was jokes.”
Somebody asked Roslovic if he would actually pull the celebration out against Tkachuk. He grinned and left the door open, saying he did not know, then adding “maybe.” Toronto does not visit Florida until Dec. 3, so there is time to think it over.
Watch Roslovic tell it:
The three of them won gold together at the 2015 Under-18 World Championship. Matthews led that tournament in scoring and walked away with MVP honors.
The 29-year-old landed in Toronto on a two-year, $8 million deal in August after putting up 21 goals and 36 points in 69 games with Edmonton. He has reached the 20-goal mark in back-to-back seasons.
Jim Hiller is not handing him the job yet. The Leafs coach talked about what the spot beside Matthews demands.
“When you play with Auston, you gotta be good both ways. You can’t just be a pure offensive player or just a checker. Jack and Matthew fit that bill, so now let’s just see where it goes.”
Catch Hiller’s full session from Friday:
Getting Matthews going matters more than the nickname. He posted career lows of 27 goals and 53 points in 60 games last season and has not played since March 12, when a knee-on-knee hit from Radko Gudas left him with a Grade 3 MCL tear and a quad contusion.
Matthews, Roslovic and Matthew Knies get their first look at game speed Saturday night, when the Leafs host Montreal at Scotiabank Arena in one half of a split-squad preseason opener. Hiller said that is the line he plans to watch closest.
