Former Maple Leafs captain reveals his thoughts on Auston Matthews taking the 'C' in Toronto
Auston Matthews is now captain No. 26 in Maple Leafs franchise history, and now a former captain reveals his thoughts on the entire situation.
Over the past week, the Toronto Maple Leafs have made one of the biggest possible changes a franchise can make, after officially naming Auston Matthews as the newest captain following John Tavares' sudden decision to step aside from the role.
Many people have had thoughts on how everything went down, including former Maple Leafs captain Rick Vaive, who came with plenty of compliments for Matthews, as he believed it was 'inevitable' that No. 34 would eventually don the Maple Leafs 'C'.
«I think when you look at the entirety of everything, this was inevitable that it was going to happen,» the former Leafs captain told TSN 1050's First Up on Thursday. «He leads by example on the ice and you can't argue with what he's done of the years.»
As for the change in leadership, Vaive doesn't think much will change, as Matthews has been a leader since arriving in Toronto back in 2016, and with Tavares still around, the machine can still run smoothly behind the scenes as this team finally chases Stanley Cup Playoffs success.
«I don't think it really changes that much,» said Vaive. «A lot more is going to be expected out of Matthews with the leadership role but Tavares is still there and he's still going to be one of the main leaders. Matthews may have to be a little more vocal in the room than before but it's the same leadership group.»
Ultimately, the belief in Matthews and this leadership group hasn't changed despite the move from Brad Treliving and the organization, and if this team gets into the playoffs under Auston Matthews, confidence is high that they can finally make a deep run in 2024/25.
Source: Hockey Feed
Ex-Leafs captain gets honest about Auston Matthews
Ex-Leafs captain gets honest about Auston Matthews
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18 AOUT | 77 ANSWERS Former Maple Leafs captain reveals his thoughts on Auston Matthews taking the 'C' in Toronto Will the Maple Leafs make the Eastern Conference Finals in year one of Matthews captaincy? | ||
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