"Doesn’t look 100%" - Insider voices 'concern' over Auston Matthews’ injury status amid playoff scoring woes

Auston Matthews has not been the same dominant player he was during the regular season. The Toronto Maple Leafs captain has sputtered at times, and it has cost the Leafs heavily in the last two contests. This has led hockey insider, David Alter, to believe that Matthews may not be healthy.

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Alter said (10:11) on First Up:

"You can say all you want about the shot generation and that he's getting a lot of chances, but you can see his shot placement is just not there... Like Auston Matthews, when he's fully healthy, he's taking his time, putting everything into a wrister, and placing a puck exactly where he wants it to go. That's not happening with Matthews in these playoffs.

"He doesn't look a 100% out there," he added.

Alter also said that Matthews skipping morning skates is worrisome:

"That kind of stuff is a concern. And I just don't know where you're going to make up that offense."

The NHL analyst added that defensive specialists can be good and helpful, but "top guys" need to win games for the Leafs in this series. And that hasn't happened in the four games. That begins with Matthews.

The Florida Panthers tied the Leafs 2-2 in the series after shutting Matthews and Co. out in the last contest.

Auston Matthews reflects on lack of scoring

Auston Matthews accepted responsibility for his struggles in the Stanley Cup Playoffs this year.

He said via The Athletic that he might've been a little "snakebit" in the shutout loss:

“A little bit. I mean, the chances have been there. I think I’ve just got to do a better job bearing down on some of them.”

Matthew Knies, the left wing on Matthews' line, echoed that sentiment:

“I think we’ve got one chance and it’s out of their end. I think we need second and third opportunities. I think we need to go low to high a little more. And then obviously hit the net — I feel like we’re missing the net a ton and that’s just killing our offense.”

Sergei Bobrovsky made 23 saves to keep the Maple Leafs and Matthews out of the net.

About the author

Zachary is a journalist covering NFL, Professional Golf, esports, and Major League Baseball at Sportskeeda. He has a degree in writing/editing from Southern Adventist University (USA), and in his spare time, he likes to play games such as Minecraft, Pokémon and Fortnite, or watch sports.

Ever since he was a youth football wide receiver, Zachary has been an avid NFL fan. He loves the Carolina Panthers, with Cam Newton being his all-time favorite player (with respect to the close second, Steve Smith). If you ever meet Zachary, prepare to hear all about how underrated Newton was and how he single-handedly dragged the Panthers to Super Bowl 50.

Zachary is also a big fan of top golfers like Tiger Woods, Wyndham Clark, and Scottie Scheffler. He enjoys watching them and hopes that Woods can return to form soon and win again.

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Edited by Satagni Sikder