Jake Guentzel came to Auston Matthews’ defense, and his message was loud and clear

Although he got a lot of criticism for his appointment as Team USA captain, Auston Matthews has started to prove that perhaps that choice wasn't a bad one, especially after a strong three-point game to finish off the preliminary round.

Matthews must have heard the chatter around his lack of ability to produce when it matters and took it to heart, deciding that he as the leader needs to not only be a locker room voice, but lead by example on the ice, and his teammates are taking notice.

It's something that Jake Guentzel pointed out, and the Tampa Bay Lightning forward wanted to make sure that fans knew if they were still doubting Matthews -- it was time to stop.

Guentzel praised Matthews after Team USA's game vs. Germany and mentioned that what the captain has done for his team as a whole needs to be appreciated and the focus on offense needs to change:

It feels like a lot of the criticism from fans about Matthews comes because of his lack of playoff success with the Maple Leafs, and that he has yet to win the big one.

But this is a player who is so deeply ingrained within the US Hockey system and you can't expect him to be the only player to contribute, then get mad when he doesn't especially with the firepower around him.

Matthews has five points in three games (3 goals, 2 assists) and ranks fifth in the Olympics in scoring but being in the top five with the likes of Connor McDavid and Macklin Celebrini is no slouch either (also props to Juraj Slavkofsky as well).

What do you want from Matthews? Be the only person who can score? He leads the team in scoring, and while he is benefiting a lot from who he has around him, there's no denying he's the force the US needs to make it to the Finals and it's weird to keep criticizing him.

He hasn't won with the Maple Leafs sure, but that also has a lot to do with how the team was built around him and frankly, the team didn't do the best job. This proves that when given the proper pieces, Matthews can flourish.

Let's hope that Toronto learns that sooner than later.

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