Maple Leafs' Auston Matthews: Fills empty cage

Matthews scored an empty-net goal and blocked three shots in Wednesday's 5-2 win over the Canadiens.

Matthews' first goal of the season wasn't anything special, but fantasy managers won't mind the early contribution. His line with Matthew Knies and Matias Maccelli was a factor on two of the Maple Leafs' goals. Matthews may need some time to adjust to the post-Mitch Marner era, but he's still one of the elite scorers in the game. Bet on talent -- his 33-goal output in the 2024-25 regular season was a career low for a player who has six campaigns of at least 40 tallies.