I believe that Mitchell Marner will beat his teammate Auston Matthews in point totals and the Calder Trophy. If that sounds crazy, please give me a second to somewhat justify my thought process.
What’s Your Point? (Or more importantly their points)
Marner is leading the league in rookie points with 39 in 45 games. Tasty figures indeed. Matthews sits just behind him on 38 points (at time of writing, Matthews has netted in the 1st against Detroit to even it up). It’s what he does on the ice that makes me think that he can win the Calder and top the Leafs in total points. Other than McDavid and Andreas Athanasiou he must be one of the quickest skaters in the league. He differs from just that ‘speed skater’ title because he possesses slick hands, agility and his hockey-brain is second to none. It would be unfair to say that he is just quick, he differs from say a Michael Grabner (who is having a year, by the way) in that he isn’t purely reliant on breakaways. The confidence in his own skating and stick-handling when he goes and collects the puck from deep, is a trait that excites me.
Relax, Matthews is still a god-send
I am not for one second slandering or putting down Matthews, who will be the face of the Toronto Maple Leafs for years to come, I’m simply stating that I believe Marner has been the better player. Marner had his own pressures coming into the NHL, not on the stratospheric levels of Matthews, but pressures nonetheless. Having only played in the OHL with the London Knights, with no prior AHL experience he had to make the leap to the Big Leagues. Making Marner’s maiden season all the more impressive, whereas Matthews had a year of Men’s Elite hockey under his belt in Switzerland. Don’t get me wrong, the spotlight was bright that year in Zurich, it gave him time to adjust to being the centre of attention and ultimately the overall first draft pick.
Differing Junior Experiences
Marner would have obviously been under the spotlight but playing in a London Knights side stacked with future NHLers, unless you’re name was Connor, the pressure wasn’t going to be oh so intense. Furthermore, it’s how relaxed Mitch looks out there, constantly smiling, joking with his teammates (apparently he can do impressions of quite a few players). Frankly refreshing to see someone in the blue and white enjoying their hockey. Babcock demands hard-work but that doesn’t mean he wants his players to be tense. Marner in that relaxed state allows the creativity to takeover and can you certainly see that in his game.
Final Thoughts
There you have it, my take on why Mitchell Marner will out score Auston Matthews in terms of points and will ultimately take the Calder away from the Arizona native. As a fan I’ll be happy if either of them get it, but I’m hedging my bets on the boy from Markham.
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