Auston Takes Round 2 In The Matthews-Laine Mega Bowl
Almost eight (8) months ago to the day, the Toronto Maple Leafs organization stepped up to the podium to announce that they’d be taking Auston Matthews 1st overall in the 2016 NHL Entry Draft. Just moments later, the Winnipeg Jets got up there and drafted Patrik Laine with the #2 spot and immediately a rivalry was born. Not a rivalry that really makes a ton of sense considering Matthews plays in the Eastern Conference and Laine plays in the West. I mean, I guess they both play in Canada which makes it a little more than a rivalry than if Matthews played on the Leafs and Laine played on the Coyotes. But a media-constructed rivalry nonetheless. Something for journalists to really get their dicks hard to. A rivalry that they can easily waste a shit ton of words hyping up to hit their quota for print the next day. Kind of exactly what I’m doing right here. It’s an easy story. #1 v #2. Journos live for this shit.
Anyway, the first time these two teams met up this year, Patrik Laine had a hat trick in a 5-4 game with his 3rd goal coming in overtime right after a Matthews’ failed breakaway. Pretty fucking ridiculous. The 18-year-old has since become the youngest player in NHL history to score 3 hat tricks. And last night it looked like he was about to get his 4th after getting 2 goals in the first 2 periods. Which got him to 30 goals on the season, as an 18-year-old, before the Trade Deadline, after missing a few games due to a concussion.
Also, this was his 5th goal scored in 2 games against the Maple Leafs. Meanwhile Auston Matthews has 0 against the Jets. Hmmmmm…… it almost seemed inevitable that Laine would score the overtime winner again last night to complete the hat trick again. But keep in mind, folks,,,, there is no “I” in “Auston”. And while Matthews didn’t find the back of the net himself, he got his 3rd assist of the night in overtime.
Beats out that fat sack of shit Dustin Byfuglien for the loose puck, gets a quick pass off right on the money to Gardiner and then it was lights out in Toronto.
Snipe Cheddar, Celly Better….
Does Patrik Laine care more about scoring goals than winning games? Is Auston Matthews a better team player? Is Patrik Laine a locker room cancer? I’m not here to say. What I am here to do, however, is create these story lines and start a dialogue where people put way too much stock into a media-constructed match up. Because what’s the point of hockey if you can’t overreact to it?
Also–let’s take a quick look at Auston’s best assist of the night. This powerplay gem to Willy Nylander.
Anybody who has ever seen this kid shoot knows that he’s not missing the net that wide accidentally. Especially when he has time with his hands free on the powerplay like he did right there. That was a set play to Nylander off the backboards. You can see it develop perfectly in that 2nd GIF. Nylander crashes hard to the back pipe knowing the puck is coming off the wall. Matthews turns his head to immediately look at young William as soon as he releases the puck. That’s a set play from two Millennials taking over the show. Unreal.
So yeah, you have to give the advantage to Matthews in Round 2 of the Matthews-Laine Mega Bowl. Laine still has 5 goals to Matthews’ 0 but those 3 assists last night in a 5-4 overtime win make Auston Matthews the player of the night. So now we’re all tied up at 1-1 in the Mega Bowl. And luckily we have until next year to get those takes ready for Round 3 because again, they don’t play in the same conference so they only see each other twice a year unless they both make it to the Stanley Cup Final. Which, if you’ve been paying attention to the Jets, will most likely never happen. It makes much more sense to have the rivalry be McDavid and Laine. In which case McDavid will be the Crosby to Laine’s Ovechkin.