After a 15-game stretch where the Leafs collected at least a point, the Buds are now pointless in two straight games. Mitch Marner has also been held without a point in the same span, after notching points in 23-straight, while Auston Matthews continued a productive 10-game stretch with a pair of points in Washington last night. Now, both #16 and #34 are within striking distance of major career milestones.
As previously mentioned, Marner has now gone 2-straight games without a point after recording points in 23-straight games and has been held without a point just 4 times this entire season, finding his way on the scoresheet in 28 of the Leafs' 32 games. His play this season has been nothing short of sensational and he is earning every penny of his $10.9M cap hit.
Meanwhile, Matthews has 16 points in his last 10 games and has really begun to turn it on after a slower-than-usual start for the 60-goal man and reigning league MVP. With his goal and assist against the Caps last night, Matthews has moved into a tie with Marner atop the Leafs' team scoring list with 37 points.
Both Marner and Matthews are so close to 500 career NHL points that it hurts. With a big week that is set to kick off on Tuesday with a matchup against the Tampa Bay Lightning, Matthews and Marner have huge opportunities in front of them to achieve these incredible milestones. Matthews currently sits at 494 points in 439 career games, while Marner currently sits at 492 points in 459 career games.
Can Marner notch the 8 points he needs in the Leafs' trio of games this week to hit that impressive mark? Can Matthews tally the 6 points he needs over the same span to hit 500? Their chances are both pretty good with the way they've been playing of late, but we'll have to wait and see.
