Leafs' Matthews starting to heat up after injury layoffs
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Toronto Maple Leafs captain Auston Matthews is starting to ramp up his game as he works himself back into form after two long layoffs.
Matthews returned from a recent six-game layoff after aggravating an upper-body injury he sustained in the preseason and his production has started to heat up.
The 27-year-old centre recorded a goal and an assist during the Maple Leafs' 5-3 win over the Tampa Bay Lightning on Monday night and has scored goals in each of his last four games.
Since returning from injury, Matthews has eight goals and 14 points in nine games.
"It's been feeling better each night," Matthews told reporters after Monday's game. "Just getting back in a rhythm and playing every night, I think that kind of helps settle back into the season after the time off. But I think the way our line has been playing, just hounding pucks, trying to attack offensively and being good in our own zone has been good and we just want to keep that momentum going.
Matthews has had two separate stints on injured reserve due the same upper-body injury.
He missed nine games in November and travelled to Germany to seek treatment. After returning at the end of the month, Matthews only played 10 games before aggravating the injury.
"We definitely have to manage him and get him to a point where he's fully healthy," head coach Craig Berube said on Jan. 4 when Matthews returned a second time. "Whether that's minutes or a little bit of time off, I don't know. I don't have the answer for you right now, but we're obviously going to stay in tune with it and try to do what's best for him."
Despite Matthews' strong play since his return, the 6-foot-3 superstar is still behind his scoring pace from a season ago. After setting career highs with 69 goals and 107 points in 81 games last season, Matthews has 19 goals and 37 points in 33 games so far this season.
The Maple Leafs will be looking to him to continue his strong play for the remainder of the season as the team looks to win their first division title since the 2021 shortened season.
Toronto sits in first place in the Atlantic Division with a 30-16-2 record and five points ahead of the Florida Panthers. They are also five points behind the Washington Capitals for top spot in the NHL.
The Maple Leafs next host the Columbus Blue Jackets on Wednesday before entering into another chapter of the Battle of Ontario when they travel to Ottawa to take on the Senators.