Auston Matthews Talks About his First Time as a Penalty Killer

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Dawson Mckenzie
October 7, 2023 (3:33 PM)

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In a recent interview, Auston Matthews revealed how he felt about his first experience as a penalty killer during training camp this year.

Matthews Says Killing Penalties is a Blast But He is Still Thinking A Lot Out There

At the beginning of training camp, Sheldon Keefe expressed how he wanted to get Auston Matthews out on the penalty kill, extending the star's minutes and using his under-the-radar defensive skill in order to apply pressure on opposing teams' power plays.

Auston Matthews on the penalty kill

Recently, Matthews opened up about his experience so far killing penalties and how he is enjoying it.

Like I said a couple weeks ago, it's a challenge and I think you've got your antenna up a bit more, especially when you've got other teams' top players out there. I've just gotta keep pushing. I find I'm maybe thinking a bit [more] out there on the penalty kill, just because it's not completely natural, but I think each game has gone better and better and it's been fun for me, so I've been having a blast [killing penalties]."

Matthews Talks About Balance Between Penalty Killing and Power Killing

Having Matthews and Marner on your penalty kill brings a unique twist to things, giving them the option to pressure power plays and even bring scoring chances.

This has brought up a debate over whether or not the PK should be focused on defence only, or taking some more risks. Matthews had this to say about it.

"Obviously, the object is just to keep the puck out of your net, but we've got some smart guys out there, some guys with some elite sticks, good anticipation and are able to pick pucks off and attack when necessary when there's space. I think it's just going to be that happy medium of knowing when to attack and knowing when to just put the puck in deep and live to fight another day.

When the season comes around, we will see how many minutes Matthews will bank on the PK, and if the unique power kill style is successful.

As seen on Maple Leafs Daily:
Matthews shares his thoughts on his first training camp as a penalty killer