Toronto Maple Leafs captain Auston Matthews recently revealed which of his 373 goals he considered to be the prettiest of his career so far, and the answer may surprise you.
During a recent video on the NHL YouTube’s series called Puck Personality, Matthews was among the many star players asked about what they felt was the nicest goal they had ever scored. Matthews selected a goal against the Carolina Hurricanes during his rookie season.
Scoring a highlight reel goal while falling down? Auston Matthews can do that. #Beauty pic.twitter.com/RlDbstMj0g
— Tim and Friends (@timandfriends) February 20, 2017
“For some reason, the goal I scored in Carolina probably like five or six years ago, I liked that one a lot,” Matthews said. “It kind of reminded me of like (Alexander) Ovechkin. Not even close, but he scored a couple. Obviously the one against Arizona or the one against Montreal, kind of similar where he was falling down. I liked watching Ovi a lot growing up, so I think that one was somewhat similar. Not nearly as insane as his one against the Coyotes, but definitely something similar.”
While the 2006 goal Matthews mentioned isn’t the same as his goal against the Hurricanes, they share some similarities in that both he and Ovechkin were able to maintain control of the puck and get the shot off while falling. Both players scored their highlight reel tallies in their rookie season, which ended with them winning the Calder Trophy as the NHL’s best rookie.
Objectively, Ovechkin’s goal against the Phoenix Coyotes from 2006 is the best one of the lot and it is not even close. Matthews is certainly aware of that and not afraid to admit that his goal was not quite as good as his childhood idol. But the fact remains that the two goals share some similarities and Matthews’ 2017 goal against the Hurricanes was certainly impressive in its own right.
The two superstar snipers have long been compared to throughout their careers, especially with how parallel their careers started and the rate both have scored to the point that Matthews is at now. Some even go as far as to suggest that Matthews could overtake Ovechkin as the NHL’s all-time goals leader health permitting.
You can watch the full video down below:
