Auston Matthews Wins His 1st Rocket Richard Trophy

[WordsOfWisdom]

Congratulations Auston Matthews on winning the Rocket Richard trophy!  (This one is in the bag.)

 

The one thing Matthews can't be robbed of in this shortened season is right here:

 

 

I'm not sure anyone discussed Matthews' Calder trophy win either.... but yeah... he won the Calder trophy too. First Leafs player to do it in half a century. Players who win Calder trophies tend to become star players. Now that he's won the Rocket Richard trophy, he's the first Leafs player to ever win it. 

 

 

Matthews (at 38 goals) is miles ahead of McDavid. I can't remember the last time a player dominated one statistical category like this. He's on his way to doubling Crosby's goal total this season.

 

[JR Ewing]

@WordsOfWisdom Yeah, Matthews is having a marvelous season, that's for sure. What a shot he has, and great chemistry with Marner. He'll be the first Leaf to win the Richard Trophy, though members of the team have led the league in goals before but couldn't win the Trophy, since it's only been for around for about 20 years. Gordie Drillon and Gaye Stewart did it. Charlie Conacher did it 5 times, scoring the equivalent of 60 goals on a few of them. It will be pretty cool to see if Matthews can pass him as the best goal scorer in team history when it's all done.

 

[WordsOfWisdom]

1 hour ago, JR Ewing said:

Yeah, Matthews is having a marvelous season, that's for sure.

 

 

1 hour ago, JR Ewing said:

He'll be the first Leaf to win the Richard Trophy, though members of the team have led the league in goals before but couldn't win the Trophy, since it's only been for around for about 20 years.

 

Yes, I was trying to find the last Leafs player to lead the NHL in goals but my internet went down. I took that as a bad sign.  

 

1 hour ago, JR Ewing said:

Gordie Drillon and Gaye Stewart did it.

 

That's so Gaye.     

 

1 hour ago, JR Ewing said:

Charlie Conacher did it 5 times, scoring the equivalent of 60 goals on a few of them. It will be pretty cool to see if Matthews can pass him as the best goal scorer in team history when it's all done.

 

Wait what?  You mean I need to fix my Mortal Kombat goal progress mountain?  

 

(Hockey reference check...)

 

Son of a ....  Charlie Conacher!  Who is this guy and why doesn't anybody ever talk about him?  

 

NHL Standard

					Scoring					Goals				Assists			Shots		Ice Time
Season	Age	Tm	Lg	GP	G	A	PTS	+/-	PIM	EV	PP	SH	GW	EV	PP	SH	S	S%	TOI	ATOI	Awards
9 yrs		TOR	NHL	328	200	124	324		411	87	14	0	39	48	22	0			7
2 yrs		NYA	NHL	93	17	33	50		73	13	4	0	1	24	9	0
1 yr		DET	NHL	40	7	15	22		39	6	1	0	1	11	4	0			3
Career		12 yrs	NHL	461	224	172	396		523	106	19	0	41	83	35	0			10
1929-30	20	TOR	NHL	39	20	9	29		46				2
1930-31	21	TOR	NHL	38	31	12	43		80				3
1931-32	22	TOR	NHL	44	34	14	48		66				4								AS-2
1932-33	23	TOR	NHL	40	14	19	33		64				4						4	0:06	AS-2
1933-34	24	TOR	NHL	42	32	20	52		38	30	2	0	5	16	4	0					AS-1
1934-35	25	TOR	NHL	47	36	21	57		24	30	6	0	13	13	8	0			3	0:04	AS-1,Hart-2
1935-36	26	TOR	NHL	44	23	15	38		74	19	4	0	6	10	5	0					AS-1,Hart-4
1936-37	27	TOR	NHL	15	3	5	8		13	3	0	0	0	1	4	0
1937-38	28	TOR	NHL	19	7	9	16		6	5	2	0	2	8	1	0
1938-39	29	DET	NHL	40	7	15	22		39	6	1	0	1	11	4	0			3	0:05
1939-40	30	NYA	NHL	47	10	18	28		41	7	3	0	0	13	5	0
1940-41	31	NYA	NHL	46	7	15	22		32	6	1	0	1	11	4	0

 

Those are eye popping goal totals for a guy who never gets mentioned in Leafs-land.   

 

[JR Ewing]

49 minutes ago, WordsOfWisdom said:

Son of a ....  Charlie Conacher!  Who is this guy and why doesn't anybody ever talk about him?  

 

NHL Standard

					Scoring					Goals				Assists			Shots		Ice Time
Season	Age	Tm	Lg	GP	G	A	PTS	+/-	PIM	EV	PP	SH	GW	EV	PP	SH	S	S%	TOI	ATOI	Awards
9 yrs		TOR	NHL	328	200	124	324		411	87	14	0	39	48	22	0			7
2 yrs		NYA	NHL	93	17	33	50		73	13	4	0	1	24	9	0
1 yr		DET	NHL	40	7	15	22		39	6	1	0	1	11	4	0			3
Career		12 yrs	NHL	461	224	172	396		523	106	19	0	41	83	35	0			10
1929-30	20	TOR	NHL	39	20	9	29		46				2
1930-31	21	TOR	NHL	38	31	12	43		80				3
1931-32	22	TOR	NHL	44	34	14	48		66				4								AS-2
1932-33	23	TOR	NHL	40	14	19	33		64				4						4	0:06	AS-2
1933-34	24	TOR	NHL	42	32	20	52		38	30	2	0	5	16	4	0					AS-1
1934-35	25	TOR	NHL	47	36	21	57		24	30	6	0	13	13	8	0			3	0:04	AS-1,Hart-2
1935-36	26	TOR	NHL	44	23	15	38		74	19	4	0	6	10	5	0					AS-1,Hart-4
1936-37	27	TOR	NHL	15	3	5	8		13	3	0	0	0	1	4	0
1937-38	28	TOR	NHL	19	7	9	16		6	5	2	0	2	8	1	0
1938-39	29	DET	NHL	40	7	15	22		39	6	1	0	1	11	4	0			3	0:05
1939-40	30	NYA	NHL	47	10	18	28		41	7	3	0	0	13	5	0
1940-41	31	NYA	NHL	46	7	15	22		32	6	1	0	1	11	4	0

 

Those are eye popping goal totals for a guy who never gets mentioned in Leafs-land.   

 

 

Yeah, it's a shame, isn't it? Charlier Conacher is one of the finest goal scorers to have ever played in the NHL, and his brothers Lionel and Roy are in the Hall of Fame with him. Side-note: Lionel is also in the CFL Hall of Fame, was Canadian light-heavyweight boxing champion at 20, served in Ottawa as an MP, and even did some pro wrestling as well. Roy won the Art Ross in 1949 and Lionel was a wonderful defenseman, finishing 2nd in Hart voting two times.

 

 

From left to right: Lionel, Charlie, Roy

 

Here's a fun little article from MacLean's magazine, from 1935:

https://archive.macleans.ca/article/1935/8/1/what-do-hockey-stars-do-in-summer

 

At 6'1 and generally around 200 lbs, Charlie Conacher had tremendous size for his time in the league, and played a VERY heavy game. It was extremely effective for him, but we all know how it can wear down the players as well. Among his major injuries: he broke his collarbone, had to have a kidney removed in 1931, stayed in the lineup while suffering from tonsillitis, broke a wrist, acquired blood poisoning after being cut by a skate, and dislocated his shoulder.

 

He was basically finished by the time he was 27, and the Leafs moved him to Detroit when he was 29. He recovered enough to play every day for a few more years for the Wings and then the Americans, but was no longer the sniper he'd been earlier.

 

[WordsOfWisdom]

14 hours ago, JR Ewing said:

Here's a fun little article from MacLean's magazine, from 1935:

https://archive.macleans.ca/article/1935/8/1/what-do-hockey-stars-do-in-summer

 

I think pro sports would be better off if players were more like ordinary people again.  ie: Having a summer job when they're not playing hockey. Living in our community instead of being completely isolated from it. I think fans had much more connection to the players back in those days. 

 

 

[radoran]

13 minutes ago, WordsOfWisdom said:

Living in our community instead of being completely isolated from it. I think fans had much more connection to the players back in those days.

 

So, you're saying you prefer Les Habitants?

 

You know what they say....

 

[Podein25]

If you prorate it, he also won next year's trophy.

[WordsOfWisdom]

1 hour ago, Podein25 said:

If you prorate it, he also won next year's trophy.

 

He just might.  Might be the most accurate case of prorating ever!  

 

I just posted the thread now because it's a lock. He's 10 goals up on McDavid with a handful of games to play. He's got a very good shot at 40 goals (which is analogous to a 60-goal season) and he's taking a run at Charlie Conacher.  Auston Matthews is making his bid as the greatest Leafs goal scorer in the 100 year history of the franchise. 

 

The single season marks are vanishing quickly, and provided he stays in Toronto long term, it'll be a breeze to blow past the likes of Darryl Sittler and Mats Sundin. With all due respect to Mats Sundin, he was never in the top 10 at any point in his NHL career. He was a steady point-per-game compiler for the Leafs. Matthews will destroy all of his records someday, even if the NHL never has another 82-game season. All he has to do is stay in Toronto. 

 

 

[WordsOfWisdom]

2 hours ago, radoran said:

So, you're saying you prefer Les Habitants?

 

WTH?  

 

2 hours ago, radoran said:

You know what they say....

 

[radoran]

5 minutes ago, WordsOfWisdom said:

WTH?  

 

You know, teams that come "from" the community and are "part of" the community...