So when the Maple Leafs coach was asked if this high-octane beginning to the NHL season is a prelude to the great Sidney Crosby ceding his throne as the game’s pre-eminent player, Babcock scoffed. It’s true that Leafs centreman Auston Matthews was leading the league in scoring heading into Thursday night’s Leafs-Penguins game on Bay Street. “To me, it’s not even close,” said the Maple Leafs coach. If you isolate 5-on-5 play in those points-per-60-minutes rankings since 2007, the top four goes McDavid, Crosby, Malkin, Matthews. If you take out secondary assists, it goes Matthews, Malkin, Crosby, Ovechkin, McDavid.

Source: thestar October 18, 2018 22:53 UTC