Mini Matthews: Leafs captain has heartwarming meeting with viral costume kid
A young Toronto Maple Leafs fan stole the show this week with his creative Auston Matthews costume, which included a fake moustache and a life-sized, homemade hockey card background.
#WATCH: Toronto kid has a unique Austin Matthews costume. pic.twitter.com/H2pQUIeQoL
— 6ixBuzzTV (@6ixbuzztv) October 29, 2024
The Leafs couldn’t help but take notice. And on Thursday, seven-year-old Grayson got the surprise of a lifetime: a chance to meet his hockey hero in person.
A new video published by the team shows Grayson coming face-to-face with Matthews, who handed him a jersey ahead of the Leafs’ morning skate.
“You look like me,” the youngster told the 27-year-old while in costume.
“Yeah I do look like you,” Matthews replied. “Your moustache is better, though.”
“You look like me” – Grayson 👨🥹 pic.twitter.com/T4rlceUQWJ
— Toronto Maple Leafs (@MapleLeafs) October 31, 2024
Grayson’s great day got even better as team president Brendan Shanahan escorted him down to the ice surface to see the rest of the roster up close.
“Let’s drop the gloves,” he jokingly told Toronto enforcer Ryan Reaves.
“You gotta drop ’em first. I don’t drop first,” the veteran forward replied before gently tugging at his jersey.
“Alright, go get a nap in. We need you out there,” Reaves added. “See you later, Auston.”
While Mini Matthews is hard to beat, the Leafs recently held a costume contest of their own.
Standouts from the team party included Matthews as Darth Vader, Morgan Rielly as Beetlejuice, and John Tavares as a pumpkin.
Fueled by the Halloween spirit, the Leafs, who have a 5-4-1 record, will aim to instill fear in their opponents tonight as they face off against the Seattle Kraken.
Puck drop at Scotiabank Arena is set for 7 pm ET.