Leafs' Auston Matthews reveals potentially devastating consequence from Sasha Barkov’s high stick

Toronto Maple Leafs captain Auston Matthews made a stunning admission following his team’s 2-0 win in Game 6 over the Florida Panthers on Friday night.

At roughly the 10-minute mark of the second period, a seemingly inadvertent high stick from Florida Panthers captain Sasha Barkov caught Matthews underneath the visor, sending him to the bench in evident discomfort.

Here’s a look at the play:

Matthews went off to the dressing room for repairs, returning to the game a few moments later.

Following the game, Sportsnet’s Luke Fox reported the following:

“Auston Matthews says the Barkov high stick temporarily impaired his vision but assures he’s fine now.”

The TV broadcast showed Matthews wiping his eye, being unable to open it. While it doesn’t seem that the play affected him during the game, there’s no telling if there are any long-term consequences.

The team will assuredly examine Auston Matthews more closely in the days to come to determine if there is any damage to his vision.

But judging from his play on the ice, Matthews seemed just fine as he scored the game-winner in the third period to lift the Leafs past the Panthers in Game 6 and force a Game 7 on Sunday night.

No penalty called on Barkov’s high stick on Auston Matthews

Florida Panthers captain Sasha Barkov was at the center of controversy for his high stick on Matthews - Source: Imagn

In what could have been a replay of 1993’s high stick on Doug Gilmour, no penalty was called on Barkov’s high stick on Auston Matthews.

It’s tough to call a penalty as the blade of Barkov’s stick caught Auston Matthews on the follow-through during the face-off. As such, the officials on the ice did not believe the play was an intentional high stick.

High sticking penalties are generally called when a player is careless with his stick, catching another player anywhere in the facial region.

The Hockey rule book points out that a minor penalty “shall be assessed for high sticking an opponent.”

By that standard, Barkov deserved a two-minute minor. However, the rule book also points out that a high sticking infraction is considered when a player carries his stick beyond the normal height of his opponent’s shoulders.

An argument could be made that this incident did not involve a stick above the opponent’s (Matthews) shoulders. As a result, the officials did not blow the whistle, and play continued.

Leafs fans hope Matthews will not suffer any lingering effects from the high stick as the team will be counting on him to lead the way in Game 7.