- Matthews still isn’t sure he’ll be back with the Leafs next season, per The Athletic’s Chris Johnston
- Chayka and Sundin will be “auditioning” for the captain through draft week and the start of free agency
- Read below for full details on what Matthews wants to see before committing to Toronto
The Toronto Maple Leafs have a captain problem.
Auston Matthews still isn’t sure he’ll suit up for the Leafs next season, according to The Athletic’s Chris Johnston, who reported Tuesday that the 28-year-old has reached a point of uncertainty with the franchise.
Matthews has two years left on his $13.25 million per season deal, plus a full no-movement clause that puts the call in his hands.
He isn’t interested in a fancy pitch deck from new GM John Chayka or senior advisor Mats Sundin. What he wants is action.
“Before committing to another season in Toronto, he wants to see a roster that has been meaningfully upgraded through trades and free agency,” Johnston wrote. “This isn’t about selling him on a fancy 12-point plan or a bunch of vague promises. Seeing is believing.”
The Leafs introduced Chayka as their 19th GM and Sundin as senior executive advisor on Monday, less than 24 hours before this report dropped. Toronto finished 28th in the league at 32-36-14, last in the Atlantic Division and second-last in the Eastern Conference. The year before that, they were fourth.
Chayka and Sundin will sit down with Matthews in the coming weeks. Johnston says they’ll basically be “auditioning” through draft week in late June and the opening of free agency on July 1.
The free-agent class is thin on impact talent. Toronto’s prospect pool ranks 29th in the NHL according to The Athletic. Trade chips aren’t piling up either.
None of this is brand new. On April 16, when the Leafs cleaned out their lockers, Matthews told reporters he “can’t predict the future” on whether he’d be back in Toronto:
He played just 60 games this season due to injury, the fewest he’s logged in a non-COVID year. He still finished with 27 goals and 26 assists.
If a trade ends up being the path forward, Johnston compared the likely return to what the Canucks got when they shipped Quinn Hughes to Minnesota in December. A handful of magic beans for a generational center.
The clock starts now.
