Of course they paid Auston Matthews. He was the lottery prize for the Toronto Maple Leafs chucking the right season, and he’s a superstar in the making. The Leafs wandered through the wilderness for decades, and they finally tanked for a superstar, and they have one. Auston Matthews is the point.
So when the Leafs signed their 21-year-old franchise centre to a five-year contract worth US$11.634-million per year, it was a good day for the franchise. But it was also a reminder: the Leafs can be smart, and the Leafs can get lucky, and these Leafs can contend for a Stanley Cup.