Matthews Nets 421st to Rewrite Maple Leafs Record Books

Toronto Maple Leafs captain Auston Matthews made history on Saturday night, scoring twice in the second period against the New York Islanders to surpass Mats Sundin and become the franchise’s all-time leading goal scorer with 421 career goals.

“It means a lot, it’s a very historical franchise,” Matthews said. “There’s a lot of pride. … I am very humbled. I couldn’t do it without the great group of guys around me.”

Matthews’ first goal of the night tied him with Sundin at 420. He entered the offensive zone past Islanders defenseman Scott Mayfield, deftly shifted the puck from his backhand to forehand, and slid it past goaltender David Rittich at 9:30 of the second period, leveling the score at 1-1. Less than eight minutes later, he made history, scoring his second goal of the game and 20th of the season to break Sundin’s record. Matthews converted a cross-ice feed from Bobby McMann on a precise one-timer to put Toronto ahead.

Despite Matthews’ milestone, the Islanders rallied, with Matthew Schaefer scoring twice, including the decisive goal in the final minute of overtime, handing New York a 4-3 victory.

John Tavares praised Matthews’ achievement, saying, “A club that’s had tremendous history – a tradition of players coming before him. Hopefully that doesn’t get lost in the loss. Amazing moment for him and a hell of a player.”

Matthews continued his hot streak, recording his second consecutive multi-goal game following a hat trick in Friday night’s 6-5 Maple Leafs win against Winnipeg. Since the NHL’s Christmas break, he has tallied six goals and ten points across four games, missing only Toronto’s 4-0 victory over New Jersey on Tuesday.

“It’s incredible, congrats to him,” Maple Leafs coach Craig Berube said. “He’s accomplished a lot of things, he had a strong game again tonight. He drives the bus, drives the play for us, and everybody feeds off of him.”

Now in his second season as captain after succeeding Tavares, Matthews also ranks fourth in franchise history for total points with 760, behind Sundin (987), Darryl Sittler (916), and Dave Keon (858). Sundin, inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2012, scored 420 goals over 981 games with Toronto, while Matthews reached 421 in just 664 games.

In addition to his franchise milestone, Matthews has been named to Team USA for the upcoming Winter Olympics in Milano Cortina next month, further cementing his status as one of hockey’s premier talents.