VIDEO: Auston Matthews, top NHL Draft prospect, scores in pro debut
Auston Matthews, who is the projected No. 1 pick for the 2016 NHL Draft, scored in his first game playing as a professional with Switzerland's ZSC Lions.
By
Chris Peters
•
2 min read
Now that Connor McDavid and Jack Eichel have had their hype-filled draft seasons, it’s time for the new golden boy to get his. Auston Matthews, the projected No. 1 pick for the 2016 Draft, officially began his draft season Friday.
The Scottsdale, Ariz., native took the unusual step of eschewing opportunities to play major junior or college hockey in North America to go pro in Europe. He missed this year’s draft cut-off by two days and already has the physique and talent of a close-to-NHL-ready player. So he signed with the ZSC Lions in Switzerland, where he will earn a nice salary and play against men in the country’s top pro division. He also has former Colorado Avalanche and Vancouver Canucks head coach Marc Crawford guiding him through this season.
The stipulation for Matthews to play in Europe was that he couldn’t play for the Lions, based in Zurich, until his 18th birthday. That was Thursday. So Friday night, he was in the lineup for his highly-anticipated professional debut.
So how did it go? Well, after being listed on the team’s No. 1 center, he went ahead and scored his first professional goal in the second period. It came on a beauty of a rush play that included a flawless give-and-go right before the goal. Take a look:
Though the finish looked routine, on the tap in, that was a heck of a play to open up that ice. A lot of Matthews’ tools were on display there, including his speed with the puck on his stick and his general awareness. Charging hard to the net and having the presence of mind to angle the stick blade for the best possible tip is not the kind of play a lot of young people make.
Matthews is going to be under a lot of scrutiny this year. Going overseas was unorthodox, but the decision Matthews felt best fit his development at this point. Had he been born two days earlier, he probably would’ve been fighting for a roster spot in an NHL camp somewhere right now.
Starting the season off with a bang like this will only raise the level of expectations for him to have a monster year in the Swiss league. It won’t necessarily be as hyped or as easy to follow as the McDavid-Eichel draft, but it has every chance to be as intriguing. This should be fun to watch all year.
