He has followed a road not travelled. After skipping major junior and U.S. college hockey, Matthews is now the likely first overall pick, a superstar in the making, and even the presumed saviour of the lowly Maple Leafs.

It’s an origin story that makes little sense. An 18-year-old kid from Scottsdale, Ariz. – a place known for its cacti, golf courses and desert nightlife – is the best prospect in hockey and the projected saviour of the Toronto Maple Leafs. 

But to fully understand how Auston Matthews got to where he is, you need to know that when he was a boy, he spent thousands of hours on tiny rinks – not much larger than an end zone – fighting off two or three other kids, stickhandling in and around masses of skates and sticks to score a half-dozen goals every game.

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