Matthews hosted Leafs at Arizona house for multi-sport competition
Auston Matthews might not be the official captain of the Toronto Maple Leafs, but it’s clear that he’s emerged as one of the team’s key leaders on and off the ice.
Adding his 52nd goal of the season on Thursday night, Matthews helped propel Toronto to their sixth straight win, this time over the defending Stanley Cup champion Vegas Golden Knights.
But before the team’s most recent two games, it seems like Matthews held a friendly competition at his Arizona residence amongst his teammates while the team was visiting his home state.
“My Scottsdale insiders tell me you may have had the whole team over to your place on the off day for a virtual decathlon of sporting events,” TSN’s James Duthie told Matthews prior to Thursday’s contest.
auston on tsn saying david kampf was the best all around athlete when he hosted the team for a little sporting/relaxing day at his house in az pic.twitter.com/MV9G6pRx3j
— resting mitch face (@34sixteen) February 23, 2024
According to Duthie, the Leafs competed in pickleball, basketball, table tennis, and a round on Matthews’ golf simulator.
“I don’t know how this information keeps getting out to you guys,” Matthews joked.
But as for the player who was the most impressive competitor on the day, it wasn’t the record-setting host or even one of his star teammates, but rather a less-heralded forward on the Leafs.
“David Kampf might’ve been the athlete of the day, won the basketball shooting contest, and just a pretty good pickleball player. An awesome all-around athlete,” Matthews added.
Though there were concerns about how Toronto would fare in the absence of defenceman Morgan Rielly and his five-game suspension, the Leafs have been rolling as of late. Their six-game winning streak is the second-longest current streak in the NHL, behind only the New York Rangers, who have won nine games in a row.
The Leafs return to the ice on Saturday when they visit the Colorado Avalanche at 7 pm ET.