For Auston Matthews, the conversation around a bounce-back season in Toronto starts with one number: 50.
That’s where TSN’s OverDrive landed when the topic turned to the Maple Leafs captain and what he needs to bring in 2026-27 after a rough 2025-26 campaign. Toronto Star reporter Dave Feschuk said a Matthews revival is the biggest thing shaping the Toronto sports scene this year, and he made the expectation plain: “It's Auston Matthews starting to act like a captain and getting back to scoring 50 goals.”
Bryan Hayes pushed the point even further. He tied Matthews’ leadership directly to his scoring, saying, “That is when he is most likely most comfortable and feeling like he's contributing the most.”
Hayes added that even though Matthews is capable of helping in other ways, “For him to pop and feel emboldened in terms of leadership, it's got to be tied to goal scoring. That's why he's getting paid.”
That’s the standard now. Hayes said Matthews will likely remain one of the NHL’s top-10 paid players over the next two years, and if he’s going to match that status, he has to get back to being the league’s most feared finisher. He pointed back to the stretch when a Rocket Richard Trophy run felt automatic and argued Matthews needs to re-enter that territory.
“There was a time a few years ago where it was just expected. It was almost a formality he was going to win the Rocket.
I think he's got to get back into contention on that, and 50-plus goals would certainly do that.” Hayes agreed with Feschuk’s view and then raised the floor even higher: “That (50 goals) should be a bare minimum expectation.”
Matthews’ 2025-26 season gave the discussion its urgency. He was already below his usual level before a season-ending knee injury ended things early. In 60 games, he managed a career-low 27 goals and 53 points, a far cry from the version of Matthews Toronto has built its hopes around.
The Maple Leafs have already made major changes this offseason, with new front office leaders John Chayka and advisor Mats Sundin reshaping the organization in hopes of getting the team back to the playoffs in 2026-27. But if Toronto is going to get where it wants to go, the biggest swing may still come from its captain.
Feschuk said Matthews has to be the one setting the tone after a season that left too many holes in Toronto’s leadership. He pointed to Anthony Stolarz calling out teammates early in the year and the lack of a response to Radko Gudas’s knee-on-knee hit on Matthews as examples of what went wrong. As the highest-paid player and captain, Matthews is expected to make sure last season doesn’t happen again.
In Toronto, that’s the burden. Fifty goals isn’t being treated as a ceiling anymore. It’s the baseline.
In Other News...
Maple Leafs Suddenly Face A Tough Call On One New Forward
The Maple Leafs have spent much of the offseason reshaping their roster, and the latest wave of additions up front has created a familiar problem: not enough cap room to comfortably keep everyone. With trade chatter around Morgan Rielly having cooled, attention has shifted to Dakota Joshua, a new forward whose size and style could still draw interest around the league as Toronto looks for ways to balance its books.
Joshuas situation is the kind of decision that tends to linger right up until camp, because Toronto can use another forward like him but also has to make the math work. A player with his profile can be useful both as a depth piece and as a trade chip, which leaves the Leafs weighing whether he fits better in the lineup or as part of a deal that clears space for what comes next. [Read more 🡒]
Maple Leafs Face A Fast McKenna Decision With Real Stakes
Gavin McKenna is about to get a long look in Toronto, and the Maple Leafs are not treating camp like a formality. The first overall pick in the 2026 NHL Entry Draft will take part in training camp and the preseason as the club gauges whether he can handle a top-six offensive role, a test that carries real weight for both the lineup and his development.
Jim Hiller and the Leafs have only a short runway to sort out where McKenna fits, with preseason games and the opening stretch of the regular season shaping the call. How he looks against NHL competition will help determine whether he stays with the team and how Toronto handles the start of his entry-level contract, a decision that could come into focus quickly once the games start counting. [Read more 🡒]