Transcript: Auston Matthews Media Call - April 9, 2020
© Mark Blinch/Getty Images
Q (Mike Zeisberger, NHL.com): First of all, we found out that Freddie is down in self-quarantine with you, Freddie Andersen. Can you just talk a little bit about how your friendship between you two guys has evolved over the years?
AUSTON MATTHEWS: We've been pretty close ever since our first year together. We do lots of things together. When we got word that we were good to go home if we wanted, I was at home and he was still stuck in Toronto for a couple of weeks. I was just talking to him and invited him to come down here and just kind of get out of being crammed in a condo downtown. I invited him here and staying together has been good. Like you said, he's an extremely close friend of mine. Our relationship has just grown and grown over the years. Obviously, he's a big part of our team and I really enjoy spending time with him.
Q (Mike Zeisberger, NHL.com): Just to follow up from a hockey sense, obviously hockey isn't the number one thing on everybody's mind these days, but how much fun was it for you from a competitive standpoint to approach the 50-goal Mark against guys like Ovechkin? I know Brendan Shanahan said that depending on what happens with the season, he has no doubt if the season resumed, you'll get there or, if it doesn't, that you'll get there one of these years.
AUSTON MATTHEWS: I think it's obviously frustrating and disappointing go on pause, but I think when you think about those kinds of achievements and accomplishments, being really close to scoring 50 goals and stuff like that, it becomes irrelevant when you're talking about human lives and what's been going on around the world. Obviously, everybody would love to be playing hockey and live their normal life, but this thing is bigger than sport, it's bigger than a lot of things. I think the most important thing is to be safe and try to stay as healthy as possible. I'm looking forward to getting back on the ice and hopefully accomplishing some of those goals.
Q (Dave Feschuk, Toronto Star): We were speaking with Sheldon Keefe the other day, and he was hoping that the message is getting out to players that, that he wants guys to come back as better versions of themselves. And I obviously there's a lot of limitations in that because there's no skating and I know it's not easy to necessarily stay in game shape. But how do you see that type of thought process coming from the team? And what are you doing to address it?
AUSTON MATTHEWS: It's a good question. Obviously, it's tough. You don't have all the resources you would have if we were all training in the summer and obviously, the circumstances we're all under right now. Lately I've just been watching video, watching clips, stuff like that. Trying to stay as active as possible while respecting the social distancing and the rules that are applied. For the most part, I've just been taking it as if it was the offseason. You try to work on stuff. I've been shooting pucks and stickhandling and just having fun and treating it as if it was summertime and I was getting ready to come back and play. Obviously, lots of the resources that you typically have aren't available, but you try to make the most of it.
Q (Dave Feschuk, Toronto Star): Just a quick follow up, what kind of facilities you have at your place down in Arizona for staying in shape?
AUSTON MATTHEWS: I've got free weights and stuff like that so I'm trying to make the most of it. I've got a sport court being built right now so I've got rollerblades and I'm just getting ready to head out there and mess around and have some fun. Obviously, just trying to do everything I can to stay in shape and try to not lose that focus. When you're in the point of the season we were at, you're extremely dialed in. With 12 games to go you're in that mental space where it's hockey every single day so obviously it's tough that that's not the case anymore. You don't really have a picture of when it could all resume again, so you're just trying to stay ready and work on the things that you can.
Q (Terry Koshan, Toronto Sun): In the media we're hearing from the NHL talking about possible resumption of season and all this sort of thing and whether it goes into playoffs, but has your mind wandered at all to the idea that this might not even happen in September and we're looking at something a lot longer than the next several months?
AUSTON MATTHEWS: Yeah, everything could change, and you never really know what the case is or what's going to happen. Like I said, I think first and foremost, it's just important that everybody's practicing social distancing and staying healthy and all that kind of stuff. And then, you know, when the time comes, and we can get back on the ice again and the health officials and everybody clears that to go, obviously, there's been a lot of hypotheticals going out there. So it's tough to really kind of pinpoint or kind of set your mind on what the case and situation is going to be. I think everybody is just trying to stay as ready as possible and hope for the best.
Q (Paul Strizhevsky, NHL.com): I wanted to sort of zoom in on what Mike asked you about earlier. You're in this goalscoring race just a goal behind Ovechkin and [Pastrnak]. I was wondering how much you were paying attention to it before the pause and does it feel like maybe another piece of unfinished business at this point? What are your thoughts on just the whole goal scoring race?
AUSTON MATTHEWS: Well, of course you're going to see -- the pace those guys are scoring at -- you're going to see when they score. There's obviously unfinished business considering we've got 12 games left to play and then obviously there's close, close races for spots in the playoffs. There's pretty much unfinished business everywhere but, like I said, it's bigger. This is bigger than the sport. There's nothing that we can really do about it other than follow the rules and guidelines that have been presented to us. Obviously, your mind wanders and you think about that. Everybody would love to be playing hockey right now and doing their own thing, but like I said, that's not the case. Things are bigger than sport.
Q (Paul Strizhevsky, NHL.com): Assuming that the NHL does come back to finish the regular season, just how much would it mean to you to score more goals than Ovechkin in a season while he's still putting up these huge numbers?
AUSTON MATTHEWS: It's pretty cool and humbling to be in on the same conversation as a guy like him and being in a scoring race with a guy like him, he's obviously been a generational player, and he's made a big impact beyond the game and kind of led the way for lots of players and lots of guys. Like I said, it's humbling to just be in the same conversation as him and hopefully we can get back to playing hockey and can compete again. I think that's just what everybody misses, it's what everybody wants to do. They just want to go out there and compete and do what they love the most.
Q (Josh Clipperton, The Canadian Press): If the season doesn't resume how will you look back at the last 12 months. Obviously the off-ice stuff and then all the success on the ice. How will you sort of wrap this whole season together if we don't get back to playing and if they have to go right to the 2021 season?
AUSTON MATTHEWS: I think that's a scenario that obviously we'd all not like to see happen. But I guess if that's the case, lots of ups and downs, lots of growth and room for growth. But obviously, it's not just going to be all an uphill slope, you're going to go through tough times, and I think we had our fair share of adversity throughout the season. I think that in the end, in the long run that kind of stuff builds teams, builds character and leadership and all that. Hopefully, hypothetically speaking, that doesn't happen, but if that's the case, there's lots of things that you can look back on and learn from and take with us the following season.
Q (Josh Clipperton, The Canadian Press): It's looking like the NHL draft will have to be done either online or remotely or at a hotel if distancing rules get relaxed at some point. As a number one pick, do you feel for a guy like Lafreniere or Byfield who won't get to hear their names called the way that you did? And what was that thrill like for a young hockey player in his family?
AUSTON MATTHEWS: Yeah, I mean that experience, I think, is incredible. And, obviously, for guys like those two are probably going to be the first couple picks. Hearing your name called and going up there, getting your jersey, it's all extremely surreal. It's an experience that you dream of as a kid and obviously, if that's not the case, it's going to be tough, obviously. I think in the long run, they're going to be great players in this league, and, hopefully it'll have more memories and experiences to cherish, that are like that in the back of their minds, and not worry about it too much. Obviously, that experience for myself and I think, speaking for most guys, is a huge accomplishment and is extremely surreal.
Q (Luke Fox, Sportsnet): When most of us picture the playoffs, part of that is buildings that are just rocking with fans that kind of feed off the emotion of the game. Have you envisioned what it might be like playing in an empty rink, because there's a high probability of that happening if we are to squeeze in playoffs, and what that might feel like?
AUSTON MATTHEWS: It would feel kind of weird, to be honest. I think fans are such a huge part of the game and not only inside the arena that come to the game, but just -- when we've got the playoffs going on and we've got Maple Leaf Square and everybody out there, the atmosphere just shifts completely to another level. So, I guess thinking about that it would definitely pretty strange to be playing in an empty arena with no crowds and no noise or atmosphere.
Q (Luke Fox, Sportsnet): You said you've been working on your shot, is Freddie in net for those practice sessions and is there a bit of a competitive rivalry going on?
AUSTON MATTHEWS: No, he's not going in the net. I wouldn't do that to him. He's not a street hockey goalie, he likes to play out anyways.
Q: (Dave Feschuk, Toronto Star): Speaking to Brendan Shanahan about a week-and-a-half ago, he was talking about the season and he said on the upside you guys responded from having your backs up against the wall quite regularly including your last game where you beat the Lightning. On the downside, he was wondering why this team had a tendency to put it's back against the wall so often. Any thoughts on that?
AUSTON MATTHEWS: That's a good question. I don't really know how to answer that. For a big part of the season, I guess, starts for us were a bit of an issue and I think for us, just trying to have more of a killer mentality and a killer instinct to start games no matter who we're playing, making sure we're all ready. That should be taken upon the leaders to set that example but, as a team, I think there were points in time in the season when things weren't going well where we really didn't start … [reception cuts out] … I think all of that kind of showed a bit of an immature side of us, but I think that's all stuff that can be fixed. It's more of a mentality, I think, than anything.
Q: (Dave Feschuk, Toronto Star): Sorry - you dropped out there quite a bit. You talked about the killer mentality off the top, but I didn't get most of that last part.
AUSTON MATTHEWS: Yeah, sorry, just having a killer mentality and a killer instinct going into games, no matter who we're playing, where they are in the standings. Just making sure that all 20 guys are ready to play and ready to compete and like I said, it's on our leaders to set that example as well.
Q: (Dave Feschuk, Toronto Star) On a lighter note, it's been noted that you are a great devotee to various dating shows on TV - Love is Blind, Love Island. Have you been able to turn Freddie onto those and what is the appeal, what is your sales pitch for watching these shows?
AUSTON MATTHEWS: The first one I watched was Love in Blind and it was just on Netflix and it was just right there so I clicked it and started watching it. I just binge-watched it. I think I've watched it like two or three times because I wanted all my friends to watch it. I wanted Freddie to watch it, I wanted my other good friend that's here with us to watch it. I don't really know what the appeal is. Another friend of mine was watching this Love Island show and kind of turned me onto it too. Freddie's not really a big fan of that one. He'll only watch a couple of episodes before he leaves the room and goes somewhere else. I really don't know what the appeal is. It's pretty awful but I'm in deep now so I can't turn back.
Q: (Josh Clipperton, Canadian Press): I'll keep it light as well. NHL Network has been broadcasting some of the old games down there and they've been up here on Sportsnet. I'm wondering if you caught any of them. Wondering what you thought about the goaltending equipment of the 70s and 80s, and the hooking and holding of the 90s? Are you jealous about one part of one era and happy that you didn't play in another?
AUSTON MATTHEWS: I don't have Sportsnet down here, but I think the whole game has changed so far. I think right now, with all of the speed and skill and the talent, the young talent that's in the League now, I feel like this is the most exciting hockey that's been played, but it's obviously pretty cool to watch old games. I'm a big equipment guy so to see the guys using their wooden sticks and the goaltending gear and everything. Even the way they goaltended then compared to now, it's pretty cool to see how far it's all come together but right now with where the game is at, it's extremely exciting to be a part of and play in right now.
Q: (Justin Cuthbert, Yahoo Sports): Sheldon Keefe mentioned Tuesday that he's binging on the Toronto Maple Leafs and that he doesn't have a Netflix account. First, does it surprise you at all that he hasn't shut his brain off and what - other than an apparently relentless work ethic - stood out to you about his first few months on the job?
AUSTON MATTHEWS: No, that's not really too surprising to be honest. Since he's taken over, like you said, his work ethic and his commitment to the players and the team - not just on a hockey level but I guess on a personal level - it's been amazing. I think he's been great. Everybody's been really receptive to him and I think he's been extremely receptive to us as well. I think that's all you can really ask for. I think you kind of pinpointed it right there, the fact that he's continued to watch film and find different ways for the team to be better, areas of weaknesses and strengths and stuff like that. I think that's just a commitment to be the best coach that he can be and obviously help the team as much as possible.
Q: (Michael Traikos, Postmedia): With the way the standings have shaken out so far, it looks like you guys would have been facing the Lightning. Just wondering if you'd already start of kind of envisioning what a first round series against Tampa would look like, and was part of you kind of hoping it would be Boston again this year, sort of a chance to slay the dragon?
AUSTON MATTHEWS: I don't think we were really thinking too far ahead. We were in a race of our own with Florida there. It was kind of neck-and-neck the last couple of weeks before the pause, but I think we tried not to let our minds wander too far into the unknown. I think when you look at heading into the playoffs and who you think you can play; it doesn't really matter. The whole revenge thing, if we were to play Tampa Bay in the first round obviously our focus is on them and no one else until whatever happens there. We just don't let our minds drift too far, especially with the unknown.
Q: (Michael Traikos, Postmedia): To that end, with the up-and-down season that the Leafs were currently having, how much were you guys kind of looking forward to maybe turning the page and maybe changing the narrative in the playoffs and really kind of hoping things would click for you guys, consistent-wise?
AUSTON MATTHEWS: I think that's obviously a goal. Since our first year, it's no secret, three years, kind of the same result. You'd love to get to that point again and change up the narrative and we've been working our way to get to that point. For now, we still have 12 regular season games and obviously there's a lot of unknown about when it does resume what the situation is going to be. I guess, until that happens it's tough to kind of think of all of these hypotheticals when you don't really know what to expect.
