May 16, 2025; Sunrise, Florida, USA; Toronto Maple Leafs center Auston Matthews (34) celebrates with teammates after scoring against the Florida Panthers during the third period in game six of the second round of the 2025 Stanley Cup Playoffs at Amerant Bank Arena. Mandatory Credit: Sam Navarro-Imagn Images
For Auston Matthews, the moment was long overdue.
With his team's season on the line and the game tied 0-0 in a tight defensive battle, the Toronto Maple Leafs captain took a pass from linemate Mitch Marner and beat Florida Panthers goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky for what ended up being the game-winning goal in a must-win Game 6 for the Leafs.
It was Matthews' first-ever goal in the second round of a Stanley Cup Playoffs series, finally breaking through after numerous shot attempts earlier in the series were unsuccessful.
"That felt great," Matthews said after his team's 2-0 win at Amerant Bank Arena. "I've had some good opportunities all series and I'm just going to continue to shoot and believe that the next one is going in."
After the Maple Leafs opened their best-of-seven series with a pair of victories, Florida responded by winning the next three. The last one, a 6-1 drubbing at home, was perhaps one of their worst efforts in a playoff game in recent memory. The uninspired effort from Game 5 could have sunk Toronto. But if they were going to turn it around, their stars had to step up, and Matthews' goal, assisted by Marner, certainly delivered a moment.
"He plays 200-feet for me. Touches all areas of the game and got a big goal for us tonight," Maple Leafs head coach Craig Berube said. "It starts with his determination. His leadership that way, you know rubs off on the rest of our team."
After Game 4, Berube was asked what he felt it would take for Matthews to finally break through. He lauded his captain's effort in all other games. While dismissing any concerns about Matthews' offense, he predicted that a "big goal's coming". He's certainly found his moment.
"It’s such a huge, huge goal. That’s a situation where no one wants to make a mistake," Maple Leafs forward Max Pacioretty said. "You could feel the tension on both sides there at that point of the game, and just an unbelievable shot from an unbelievable player. That’s why he’s our captain."
Pacioretty scored Toronto's other goal for insurance in the tight defensive battle. It was the veteran's second consecutive big Game 6 goal, after scoring the winner that helped them advance against the Ottawa Senators in the first round.
There was always something missing about Matthews' game in the playoffs. Of the 110 players in NHL history who have recorded over 400 goals in their NHL career, Matthews was the only one without a goal beyond the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs until his big moment on Friday.
Matthews has been a superstar in the league for a while, but there was always the question about whether Toronto's captain could rise to the moment as some of his peers such as Connor McDavid have done with the Edmonton Oilers or Nathan MacKinnon with the Colorado Avalanche.
Game 6 was an important first step for Matthews' legacy in the playoffs. But the Leafs need another big moment in Game 7. A loss against the Panthers on Sunday, and the moment will be forgotten.
