Matt Larkin is raising the question of Auston Matthews' future after another Maple Leafs loss, and the timing is awkward for Toronto.
Matthews scored again Thursday night, but the Leafs fell 5-2 to the Wild. It was their fifth straight defeat, and Toronto sits 23rd in the NHL at 8-11-2.
That context matters, because Larkin's latest column on the Leafs captain is about direction, not production. The star center has 12 goals and 29 points in 21 games, and the team around him keeps sliding.
Home ice hasn't helped. Toronto is 4-8-1 at home, with a goal differential of -6 and a 3-7-0 mark over its last 10.
Larkin pointed out that Matthews will be 30 by the time next season starts, and that he has yet to escape Round 2 of the playoffs in his career.
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The excerpt then trails off mid-thought, with Larkin starting a sentence about what happens if the Leafs continue down this road. What it does say plainly is that Matthews has made it clear a winning team trajectory matters to him.
Why the Leafs' slide puts Matthews' next decision in focus
Matthews is signed through the 2027-28 season, so there is time. But time is exactly what a losing team burns, and a player who has spent 68 playoff games without getting past the second round isn't going to be patient forever.
The 2016 first overall pick isn't the problem here. A center with 440 career goals in 710 games, who scored in the loss to Minnesota, is doing his part. The 75 goals against are the number Jim Hiller and John Chayka have to answer for.
Nothing in the post says Matthews has asked for anything, and it would be a mistake to read it that way. It does say the captain is watching the standings, and he has company. The Leafs are seventh in the Atlantic Division.
Toronto gets a chance to stop the bleeding Saturday against the Oilers. Another loss would make it six straight, and the questions about where this team is headed will only get louder.
This article was written with the help of artificial intelligence, based on public reports and official sources.
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