Maple Leafs' Auston Matthews Shares Photos Golfing With Former Teammate Joe Thornton

Toronto Maple Leafs captain Auston Matthews' summer is in full swing.

The 27-year-old posted a carousel of images to his Instagram on Saturday afternoon, which included family time, golfing with friends, and several photos with his dog, Felix. Matthews' golfing adventures featured a round with Utah Mammoth forward Clayton Keller, as well as Hockey Hall of Fame inductee and former teammate Joe Thornton.

He also showed support this week for friend and music artist Justin Bieber's latest album, "Swag", which released on Friday. Matthews posted two stories on his Instagram reacting to a pair of Bieber's songs on the album.

The Toronto captain is coming off an injury-riddled season, where he scored 33 goals and 45 assists in 67 games. He missed nearly all of November trying to rehab the injury, even taking a trip to Munich, Germany, to receive treatment from a doctor he's used in the past.

Once Matthews returned, he and the Maple Leafs managed the ailment enough for him to play and still provide quality minutes for Toronto. With his goalscoring not at the level it usually is, Matthews was able to showcase other parts of his game, including his 200-foot play.

"Physically, it was a tough season. I don't need to get into the specifics of stuff, but I got injured in training camp. Obviously, wasn't feeling great throughout the first month or so of the season, took some time off, went to Germany, did all these things to try to feel better," Matthews said during his end-of-season media availability in May.

"There was some good stretches where I felt good. There were some stretches where I didn't feel very good. Definitely a tough year physically, but I'm confident with some time off and going through my own process and stuff like that and treatment, I'm really confident I'll be back 100 percent next season. And there's nothing to be worried about."

Matthews' 33 goals this year were his lowest total in a season since being drafted by the Maple Leafs in 2016. He followed up the regular season with three goals and eight assists in 13 playoff games against the Ottawa Senators and Florida Panthers.

The Scottsdale, Arizona native, while discussing his ailment during locker cleanout day, said surgery wasn't on the table. Matthews is entering the second season of a four-year, $53 million contract, which expires in 2028.