Matthews on roll for Maple Leafs heading into 4 Nations Face-Off 

TORONTO -- Auston Matthews is enjoying his best stretch of the season for the Toronto Maple Leafs.

How good?

"A lot like it was last year," Toronto forward Bobby McMann said. "Seemed like every game he was scoring. It's hard for us because it's almost like we're used to it but that's an incredible pace. ... You have guys who go through spurts but not like him, on a consistency basis, it's him."

Last season, Matthews scored an NHL career-high 69 goals in 81 games. It didn't not come as easily to the Maple Leafs captain to begin this season. He had 11 goals in his first 24 games and then missed nine games from Nov. 5-30 and another six from Dec. 21-Jan. 4 with an upper-body injury that bothered him since training camp.

Since returning, Matthews has scored in eight of 11 games, giving him nine goals during the stretch and 20 in 35 games. It is a pace just shy of last season and one that leaves him with a chance of reaching 40 goals for the seventh time since joining the NHL in 2016-17, after he was the No. 1 pick in the 2016 NHL Draft.

Matthews and the Maple Leafs host the Minnesota Wild at Scotiabank Arena on Wednesday (7 p.m. ET; TVAS, SNE, SNO, SNW, FDSNNO, FDSNWI) coming off a 2-1 loss at Ottawa Senators on Saturday, when the forward's goal streak ended at five games.

The hot streak comes at at perfect time for Matthews and the United States. The center, who grew up in Arizona, will join Team United States for the 4 Nations Face-Off in Montreal and Boston from Feb. 12-20 and begin play against Team Finland at Bell Centre on Feb. 13 (8 p.m. ET; ESPN, ESPN+, SN, TVAS).

"Since he's been back the second time, it really looks like he's back to normal," retired forward Rick Vaive told NHL.com on Monday at the annual Maple Leafs gala, "A Night with Blue & White."

"You just watch him. He gets it and it's top-shelf short side. I marvel at how he scores goals, I really do, and I scored a lot of goals. I love the way he plays. I love the fact he can score goals, and I mean, hey, he scored 69 goals in a season. I was disappointed he didn't get to 70, but 69 is pretty darn good."

Net proceeds from the gala benefit the MLSE Foundation, an organization built on the belief that sport has the power to change the world. It works to eliminate barriers by providing equitable access to sport and opportunity through initiatives like Change the Game, a campaign launched Feb. 19, 2021, with the goal of investing $30 million to continue to create positive outcomes for youth and help them reach their potential.

Vaive certainly knows about putting the puck in the net. The former Maple Leafs captain scored 441 goals over his 876-game NHL career and reached the 50-goal plateau in three consecutive seasons with Toronto from 1981-84.

"I watch it, and I marvel at how [Matthews] is able to score from some of the places he does," Vaive said. "Some of the shots he takes from some spots, and it goes in, I wouldn't even think of [shooting] that... He's got probably one of the best quick shots I've seen in a long, long time.

"But that is outrageous. 50 something every year and then boom, 69. Sixty-nine is incredible. I didn't even imagine scoring 50 goals, let alone 54, and then he comes along and breaks it and then gets 69 last year and I'm like, 'Holy cow.' I couldn't even imagine scoring that many goals when I played."

That Matthews seems to be returning to form is only good news for the Maple Leafs, who despite missing him for 15 games are 30-18-2 and lead the Florida Panthers by one point for first in the Atlantic Division. Vaive is impressed by how they've played under coach Craig Berube, who was hired May 17 to replace Sheldon Keefe.

"Craig had to fight for everything he got in the National Hockey League, and I think he's brought that here," Vaive said. "You can see it in the game the players play that they're doing the same thing. I think that's important.

"Absolutely (they are better positioned for the Stanley Cup Playoffs). The biggest thing is how good they play in their own zone. Nobody is taking off out of the zone now until the puck comes out and that's good defense. That's what wins in the playoffs. If they continue to do that, then they will be successful. If they don't, then they won't be."

The Maple Leafs are 12th in goals-against (2.88 per game), a marked improvement from when they were 21st (3.18 per game) last season.

"They're getting used to playing [with sound defensive structure and physicality]," Wendel Clark, another former Maple Leafs captain, told NHL.com "They have a great big defense, they're playing great defensively and it gives the goalies lower-risk shots to stop, so now they look better. It all really comes together, and the defense really has played well and kept everyone honest in front of the net."

Despite making the playoffs each season since 2016-17, the Maple Leafs have advanced just once, a six-game win against the Tampa Bay Lightning in the 2023 Eastern Conference First Round. Whether this version will finally break through, time will tell, but what Vaive has seen thus far leaves him optimistic.

"As everybody in Toronto knows, it doesn't matter what they do in the regular season," he said. "They're going to be judged in the playoffs, but I think they've got the right coach and the right type of team that can do some damage."