Team USA captain Auston Matthews has had a quiet 4 Nations Face-Off so far. In the 4 Nations Face-Off final, Matthews faces an important career signpost.
Three of the Toronto Maple Leafs' Core Four played in the 4 Nations Face-Off, with two of them facing off in the final.
Sweden’s William Nylander is done and back in Toronto. The other two – Team Canada right winger Mitch Marner and Team USA center Auston Matthews – will face off against each other in the 4 Nations final on Thursday.
That said, Matthews and Marner have hardly been leviathan forces throughout the tournament.
Marner did have the overtime-winner for Canada against Sweden, but he’s been held off the scoresheet in his other two games. The more significant disappointment has been Matthews, who hasn’t done much of anything important in the 4 Nations Face-Off.
Considering this is a star performer and the captain of the American team, Matthews’ performance – zero goals and one assist in two games – has been very underwhelming. With the U.S. team set to face the Canadians in the championship final, nobody needs a bigger game more than Matthews.
We’re not a Matthews hater by any stretch. In our estimation, he is a needle-mover who is the best player to ever suit up for the Leafs. He's earned some praise for his defensive game in this tournament as well.
But Matthews’ history in the Stanley Cup playoffs doesn’t scream out “elite.” He’s been more or less a point-per-game player in the post-season, with 48 points in 55 career playoff games. But we all know about Toronto’s playoff struggles, and Matthews has to own his role in that failure.
This is why we've needed to see more from Matthews in these high-stakes games. The American team’s braintrust kept Matthews out of the lineup for their final round-robin game against Sweden on Monday due to upper-body soreness. But if he doesn't get a point and make an impact in the final, legitimate criticisms will follow him until the playoffs. The same goes for Marner.
When the 4 Nations Face-Off ends, Marner or Matthews will celebrate. Regarding which Leafs star needs a win more, it’s clearly Matthews. Marner is an important component of Canada’s attack, but Canadian superstars Sidney Crosby, Nathan MacKinnon and Connor McDavid are the leaders on offense. Matthews is central to the U.S. team’s chances of winning the tournament. And when you have Matthews' profile, you have to live up to the heightened expectations that accompany it.
Wayne Gretzky once spoke about understanding the key to being a legend: You have to win in crucial moments of your career to be considered an all-time great. If you don’t, your legacy will be tainted with defeat.
America does have terrific depth on offense and throughout the lineup. But Matthews was given the captaincy for a reason: he’s their key competitor and is considered by most to be the greatest goal-scorer of his generation.
There’s still time for Matthews to change the narrative about himself. All he has to do is rifle a puck or two past Canadian goaltender Jordan Binnington in important moments on Thursday night.
It’s really that simple, and Matthews’ play on Thursday night will be another important signpost in his career. He can author a terrific chapter in his career with a win, or he can have the critics author it.
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