Matthews now has 25+ more goals since entering the league than Pastrnak and Draisaitl. 85 more than Nathan MacKinnon. With 25 goals in 28 games this year and solid defensive play, is he safely the second best player in the league?
by dober12345
@National Hockey League
44 Comments
no
Yes
less points than all the players you mentionned but sure cherry pick stats to fit your narrative. Hes the best goal scorer of that list for sure tho
25 goals is nice… but the most amazing thing is that he has ZERO PIM this season; simply astonishing!
Yeah I would say he’s the 2nd best offensive player in the league.
Who has more points though?
Who has the best plus minus?
What about underlying stats like goals expected vs goals against while on ice?
Who is more productive 5on5?
All things and many more that matter.
Eh, has he ever taken his skate off and tried to stab somebody though?
At 14th in points I would say “~~safely~~ arguably the second best ~~player~~ forward in the league”.
22 more goals than *anyone* since entering the league*
with 27 fewer games played than 2nd place Ovi.
No. And im a Leaf fan
Best goal scorer and very good defensively but not #2 overall. Top 10 though
Hasn’t even been the best Leaf this year
It’s Cale Makar
Lol no he is not even close, goals are not the only metric and he is a pylone in the playoffs. Draisaitl and MacKinnon both get way more points every year and do significantly better in the playoffs. 2nd best is between them I’d lean towards Draisaitl personally due to his insane playoff stats.
Not at all
The two best players are on teams that will never seriously compete for cups. Quite a league Bettman runs.
nah
I would say best goal scorer in the league for sure, but second best player is a not even close. There’s currently 12 players ahead of him in points right now including his own teammate and by the end of the season I expect he’ll be around 10-12th in the league in points.
Nah. He’s not that guy.
McDavid > Kucherov > Makar, Matthews, Drai > The next bunch
He’s at worst 4th but I still have trouble putting him ahead of Makar and Mac.
Arguably second best offensive player
Are we still calling mcdecent #1?
People who hate on Matthew’s don’t watch the games and only look at stats. Solidly second best forward in the league.
Right now i would say he may be THE best player in the league
The game is more than just points and skill
Its also about defensive responsibilty and being a locker room leader
Mcdavid may be better at producing points but hes not as complete as matthews
Matthews or makar are the best in the league
He’s had more multi-goal games than single goal games this season.
Just an absolutely absurd level that he’s found. He’s probably already the premier goal scorer in this league, but if he hits 60 again, that would really cement it; Ovechkin never did that.
There is 100% an argument for this, but definitely not “safe” in second if we are saying overall player attributes. There are plenty of players in the league that could have an argument made, as there are so many metrics to consider (defensive play, showing up in playoffs, playmaking ability, etc….). He is the best goal scorer right now, but other players would be considered the best in other regards.
I think if we take Mcdavid out of the question, there would be some variety on what players people would choose to build their team around as the next best player. Some examples off the top of my head would be Jack & Quinn hughes, Drai, Makar, Kucherov, Mack. Maybe even some goalies that give their team an opportunity every single night and can be relied on in the playoffs.
Despite saying all that, though, I don’t wanna belittle Matthews. There is just a lot insane talent in the league.
Until the playoffs.
He *could be* the second best player. His problem is when he’s not playing well he’s fucking invisible at times. I don’t think you say that bout Drai/Mac/Pasta very often.
I find it hard to call him that as he was Invisible for 10 games already this year. Everyone has ups and downs through the year, but I feel like he’s still not consistent enough to rank quite that high.
People saying not even close are really biased
Boeser has 23 goals in 33 games and 37 points, still wouldn’t put him top 3 on the Canucks let alone saying he’s top of the league.
Having a good start to the year doesn’t pass leon in terms of the last 3-5 years and obviously playoff numbers.
Last 5 years: Leon 316 GP, 466 points
Matthews 297 GP, 374 points
Leon with 92 more points
Career playoff stats: Leon 49 GP, 77 points, 3rd all time in playoff points per game and with another run will pass Gretz and Mario for first all time
Matthews 50 GP, 44 points. 75th ranked all time in PPG
Not even close. Not even a conversation. Matthews shitty playoff stats automatically disqualify him from being ahead of Leon and mackinnon at least
He’s top 5 easily. Where you slot him is up for debate. He’s a beast out there .
#1!!!
He’s easily the best goal scorer in the league, but he has still been a little hot and cold this year to truly take over that “2nd best player” title. Matthews has scored in bunches and propped up his totals, but there were some lengthy stretches where he wasn’t that great offensively and the Nylander/Tavares line had to carry the load for the leafs.
He was undisputedly the 2nd best (some my even argue best) during his 60+ goal year, but I don’t think he’s back there yet, and there are guys like Drai, Makar, Mackinnon, Kucherov etc all competing for that spot without much separation.
Matthews isn’t even close to second best player. He’s a great player, but he doesn’t even crack top 5 IMO.
I hate the fucking leafs and hate Matthews but I think he might be the best player in the league right now. Fuck the leafs.
And how many cups ?
Matthews is legit. There’s so many people who question his talent because they’re a bunch of leafs haters but guaranteed they’re jealous he’s not in their team. The guy is a machine and he’s got such a presence too and celebrates hard when he scores
Best goal scorer sure. Second best player nah there are plenty of players who play or are more clutch than he is. Maybe if he shows he can do what he does on a playoff run I’d consider him higher.
Matthews only has 12 assists. The best players make the players around them better.
The best players also find a way to push/pull their teams to win more than one playoff series since entering the league.
He has a lot left to prove before earning such a title
Leaf shills Matthews the 2nd best player in the league 🤣
And he also has a five head
i think he has been since his first game
With his defensive numbers to go with the scoring, yes.