RALEIGH, N.C. — Perhaps it’s no accident that in arguably the Toronto Maple Leafs’ most complete performance this fall, a wholesome Tuesday night win over the defending (and injured-ravaged) Stanley Cup champs, Auston Matthews may have had his best game of the season.

In terms of territorial advantage at five-on-five, it was the best: The Leafs captured 82 percent of the expected goals with their captain on the ice.

Those 15 minutes came almost entirely against the Panthers’ makeshift but still majorly talented No. 1 line of Sam Reinhart, Brad Marchand and Anton Lundell, as well as the gigantic defensive pair of Seth Jones and Niko Mikkola.

Matthews also won nine-of-10 faceoffs against the Panthers, recorded a primary assist on a John Tavares empty-netter, and blocked two more shots. (He is quietly second among all NHL forwards with 38 blocks this season.)

This is what Matthews seemed to have in mind coming into the season when he spoke about a “standard” he hoped to recapture this season.

“I think I’m getting there,” Matthews said in a one-on-one conversation ahead of another key game for the Leafs in Carolina on Thursday night. “I’d certainly like to do more and certainly would like to get to another level. But I think it’s turning in the right direction.

“In the end, I want to produce, I want to score and do all those things. But that doesn’t matter if we’re not winning. You’re still not leaving the rink happy. I feel like I’m trending in the right direction and continue to take those steps.”

More than tilting the ice when he was out there, Matthews generated a bunch of high-quality chances for himself, the kind of nightly assortment that used to be standard when he was at his apex in the NHL.

He finished with seven attempts on net in the five-on-five space and six individual scoring chances, which equalled the second-most for him in a game all season. That included a breakaway opportunity that he couldn’t quite worm around Sergei Bobrovsky.

The variety in shots was reminiscent of peak Matthews: Four snappers, one backhand, one wrist shot and one “poke” shot, which may have been the jam attempt he had on Bobrovsky in the third period.

He had a wide range of looks.

“I’ve just gotta do a better job of capitalizing on those,” Matthews said. “Bob really threw me off on that breakaway, to be honest.”

the Leafs are moving the puck a lot quicker, especially off opposition errors

Matthews just ran out of a room on the side but this was a great look pic.twitter.com/haSnNl6OWk

— Omar (@TicTacTOmar) December 3, 2025

“I think even the last couple games, I feel like I’ve got good legs and I’m generating some good opportunities,” Matthews added. “I feel good about my game personally, and where the team’s at. Obviously, I’d like to put the puck in the net more, especially when you get those Grade-A opportunities.”

Those last couple of games included a vintage-looking goal against the Penguins last weekend, the kind of wrister from deep that Matthews used to bury frequently.

that’s Auston Matthews pic.twitter.com/pT68PdYnPh

— Omar (@TicTacTOmar) November 30, 2025

Encouraging glimpses of the Matthews of old, the one who used to trample all over the league, are starting to add up as the Leafs inch toward a turnaround.

Part of that — a big part of that — is Matthews rediscovering the pop and power on his once vaunted shot.

The last couple of games hint at that shot re-emerging following an undisclosed injury that kept Matthews out for two weeks last month.

“It’s definitely how I feel,” Matthew said. “Certainly, the first couple sessions back on the ice (following the injury) it didn’t feel amazing.”

It looked that way, too— as if Matthews, as he worked his way back from the injury, couldn’t generate full torque on his shot.

“Yeah, it just took a while to get warmed up,” he said. “I didn’t want to overdo anything. Now it definitely feels good, it definitely feels like I’m generating the power I really want. Just gotta work on my accuracy a little bit.”

Matthews has played four games since the injury, each one looking better than the last.

“It’s tough when you come back from injury,” he said. “The first game always (feels) great, because (of the) adrenaline and everything like that, and then you get thrown into three games in four nights and it starts to set in a little bit.”

He grinned before adding, “But no, I feel good.”

Matthews cited the benefits he felt from working with members of the team’s skill development staff.

“Just getting back to feeling more agile out there and realizing that speed and playing how we want to play,” he said. “But I’ve definitely felt pretty good over the last couple of games. It’s amazing what confidence can do for the team and for guys individually, when pucks start to go in and things start to go right.”

Auston Matthews has played four games since he returned from injury. (Justin Berl / Getty Images)

He’s not there all the way back yet.

There’s plenty of room for growth, including and maybe especially on the power play, where Matthews has been operating of late as the quarterback of the No. 1 unit. Not surprisingly, Matthews has looked uncomfortable in the role, unsure, it seems, when to pass (and where), when to attempt a shot through a maze of traffic from very far out, and how best to defend a short-handed rush.

The Panthers scored their only goal against the Leafs that way on Tuesday night.

Craig Berube didn’t say whether the team would continue with the experiment against the Hurricanes, though it feels particularly risky and perhaps unwise to do so against a Carolina penalty kill that’s especially feisty and aggressive.

“We’re just trying to find something that works,” Berube said.

Lacking power-play production is a primary factor in Matthews’ lagging numbers this season: He’s scored his only power-play goal back on Oct. 24.

— Stats and research courtesy of Natural Stat Trick, Hockey Reference and NHL EDGE