Matthews, Marner leading way for Maple Leafs during five-game win streak

Auston Matthews and Mitchell Marner are attempting to bury the past by doing the same to the opposition.

The Toronto Maple Leafs forwards are on a mission to erase the memory of previous Stanley Cup Playoff failures, and they are fine-tuning their respective games in record-breaking fashion to do exactly that.
Facing a possible postseason matchup against the two-time defending champions next month, Matthews and Marner stole the show.
Matthews (three goals, one assist) and Marner (one goal, two assists) combined for seven points in a 6-2 victory against the Tampa Bay Lightning at Amalie Arena on Monday, moving the Maple Leafs (45-19-5, 95 points) two points ahead of the Lightning and Boston Bruins for second place in the Atlantic Division.
"This is a big game for us, obviously," Matthews said. "They're a really good team, they know how to win, so it was an important game for us this point of the season. All these points count and really matter. I think it's just a really complete game by everybody."
Ten months after being criticized for combining for one goal in their seven-game elimination to the Montreal Canadiens in the Stanley Cup First Round, the linemates and close friends are shredding records with hopes of finally having playoff success. Matthews and Marner have yet to know what it's like to experience that; the Maple Leafs have not won a series since 2004.
Matthews led the way Monday with a hat trick to give him 54 goals, tying Rick Vaive's single-season Maple Leafs record set in 1981-82. The 24-year-old has scored 47 goals in his past 47 games and is vying for his second consecutive Maurice Richard Trophy, awarded to the NHL's top goal scorer.
Marner has played a significant role in Matthews' historic run with 56 points in his past 30 games. It's the most points accrued by a Toronto player in a 30-game span, eclipsing Doug Gilmour's 55 in 1992-93.
But when Marner saw his pal equal the Maple Leafs record at 7:08 of the third period, it was as though a family member accomplished something memorable.
"I feel like a proud brother, to be honest," Marner said. "Even when that 50th (goal) went in (against the Winnipeg Jets on March 31), imagine how excited he was. I was trying to keep my energy pretty low, but I was quite fired up when he got 50.
"He does a lot for us on that ice. It's great to see him get rewarded. … We've been through a lot together. We just kind of try to push each other every day, and it's great seeing the effects show."
It was Matthews' fourth hat trick this season and seventh of his NHL career, moving him one goal closer to Toronto history.
"It's humbling, it means a lot, just to be in the same sentence as a guy like Rick Vaive and these other guys that have come before us," Matthews said. "They have just kind of represented what it means to be a Toronto Maple Leaf. It means a lot and it's extremely humbling."
Matthews' humility is definitely something that Vaive said he admires, along with his remarkable skill.
"It's time to pass the torch," Vaive told NHL.com in a postgame phone interview. "It's been 40 years, so it's time for it to be broken. And to see it being done by such a generational player is so special.
"The chemistry he and Marner have together is great. You can tell how bad they want to have playoff success. Marner is such a skilled playmaker and finds so many ways to get the puck to Matthews, who can score in multiple ways."
Lightning captain Steven Stamkos and coach Jon Cooper said they couldn't agree more. During the 2022 Honda NHL All-Star Weekend in Las Vegas in February, Stamkos predicted that Matthews could very likely score 60 goals, which no one has done since the Tampa Bay forward accomplished the feat in 2011-12. Matthews needs six goals with 13 regular-season games remaining.
Cooper said he thinks the ceiling could be even higher.
"When you have that arsenal of weapons he has, and the way he shoots, I wouldn't be surprised if some time in his career he gets 70," Cooper said of Matthews earlier Monday. "That's how good of a scorer he is."
Matthews, who has scored in six straight games, can set a Maple Leafs record when they visit the Florida Panthers on Tuesday (7 p.m. ET; TVAS, BSFL, TSN4, ESPN+, NHL LIVE). More importantly, Toronto is on a five-game winning streak that includes victories over the division-rival Panthers, Lightning and Bruins, helping to create a logjam in the standings.
Florida, the first team in the NHL this season to clinch a playoff berth, leads the Atlantic with 102 points. The Panthers are seven ahead of the Maple Leafs and nine of the Lightning and Bruins. Still, Toronto controls its own fate in the race for second with two games remaining against Florida, one against Tampa Bay and one against Boston.
"Obviously we just want to try and do the best we can every night, try and go out there to get our team wins and give ourselves the best chance of going into these playoffs," Marner said. "So, we just try to go win every single night."
A goal that is helped by the record-scoring pace of Matthews, who has 17 goals during a 13-game point streak.
"He's going to break [the record], so it's going to be even better when it happens and we're excited for that opportunity," Marner said. "And like I said, he's not looking for goals out there, he's not cheating for goals. He's earning them honestly."
Vaive will be at Scotiabank Arena when the Maple Leafs host the Montreal Canadiens on Saturday. With Toronto having games against Florida and the Dallas Stars before then, he said he thinks Matthews will have already broken the record.
"I just want to shake his hand," Vaive said. "It'll be a proud moment for me to do it."