Auston Matthews hasn't looked like his old self in two years, and former NHL player turned podcaster Jay Rosehill isn't convinced this season changes that.
"I get this feeling that this is kind of the new Auston," Rosehill said on his podcast.
That's a real hot take given everything Matthews has already accomplished. He's scored 69 goals in a single season before, and he owns the trophies and hardware to prove exactly what his ceiling looks like.
But Rosehill's point is that ceiling hasn't shown up in a while. Matthews posted just 27 goals and 53 points in an injury-shortened 60 games last season, well below the level that made him a Hart Trophy winner not long ago.
"We know what he's capable of, but we just haven't really seen any sign of that in two years," Rosehill said. "I feel like we're gonna get more of the same from Auston Matthews potentially this year, and I don't love saying it."
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That's a genuinely uncomfortable take for Leafs fans given how much has changed around Matthews heading into this season.
Could McKenna's arrival be the spark Matthews needs?
Toronto has been rebuilt almost top to bottom since last season ended. New GM John Chayka has reshaped the roster, new head coach Jim Hiller runs the bench, and first overall pick Gavin McKenna arrives as the most talked-about rookie in years.
None of that guarantees anything changes for Matthews specifically though.
A new coach and a new teammate don't automatically fix whatever's actually behind two years of decline, whether that's health, systems, or something less visible entirely.
But there's a real case that McKenna's arrival could matter here beyond just his own production.
A talented, energetic rookie pushing into the lineup tends to inject something into a locker room that pure roster continuity doesn't provide.
If McKenna ends up on Matthews' wing at some point this season, as many around the team have speculated, that alone could be the kind of jolt that gets Matthews playing with more urgency again.
That's really the honest answer to all of this right now. Nobody actually knows which version of Matthews shows up, and that uncertainty is exactly the tension Rosehill is pointing at.
Toronto's whole season likely hinges on that answer more than any other single storyline.
If Matthews rediscovers his peak form, this roster has real top-line firepower to pair with everything Chayka added this summer. If Rosehill's hunch is right, Toronto is leaning on McKenna, Nylander, and a reshaped supporting cast to make up the difference instead.
Either way, this looks like a genuine playoff-caliber roster on paper. Whether that translates into a real postseason run probably comes down to which Matthews actually shows up once the games start counting.
Will Auston Matthews return to his peak scoring form this season?
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