Toronto Maple Leafs rookie center Auston Matthews set two more records during a 4-2 victory at the Buffalo Sabres on Monday.
Matthews, 19, scored his 39th goal in his 78th game during the first period. That moved him past Neal Broten for most goals by a United States-born NHL rookie. Broten was 22 when he scored 38 goals in 73 games during the 1981-82 season.
It's also the most goals by a rookie since Sidney Crosby of the Pittsburgh Penguins had 39 as an 18-year-old in 2005-06. The last rookie to score 40 or more was Alex Ovechkin of the Washington Capitals, who was 20 when he scored 52 goals in 2005-06. The rookie record is 76, set by Teemu Selanne of the Winnipeg Jets in 1992-93.
The goal also gave Matthews 67 points (39 goals, 28 assists), setting a Maple Leafs rookie record. The previous high was 66 points (28 goals, 38 assists) in 80 games by Peter Ihnacak in 1982-83. The rookie record is 76, set by Teemu Selanne of the Winnipeg Jets in 1992-93.
Matthews has goals in five consecutive games, making him the third Maple Leafs rookie to have a goal-scoring streak that long. He joins Alf Skinner, who scored in six straight games during the 1917-18 season, and Gaye Stewart, who had goals in five in a row in 1942-43, according to the Elias Sports Bureau.
Matthews is tied with Brad Marchand of the Boston Bruins for second in the NHL in goals, behind Crosby's League-high 43. Matthews also leads all rookies in goals and points.
After the game Monday, Matthews credited his teammates for his success this season. More important to him was that the win moved the Maple Leafs into second place in the Atlantic Division, one point ahead of the Ottawa Senators and Boston Bruins, with four games remaining. They play the Washington Capitals at home Tuesday (7:30 p.m. ET; TSN4, CSN-DC, NHL.TV).
"I've played with some pretty good players, so a lot of credit to them," Matthews said. "I think the most important part is, for the team, we've been getting better and better each game, each segment. We're in a good spot right now, and we just want to continue to play well."
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