Matthews to be Named Leafs’ Captain, While Laine Awaits New Home

The Toronto Maple Leafs are set to name forward Auston Matthews the franchise’s next captain. This announcement is expected to come on Wednesday morning.

Matthews, who was selected No. 1 overall in the 2016 NHL Draft – one pick ahead of Winnipeg‘s selection of Patrik Laine at No. 2 – has been with the Leafs ever since, and likely will now be considered a “Leaf for life” following the transition of the captain role from John Tavares to Matthews for the 2024-25 season – Matthews’ ninth in the league.

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Laine, on the other hand, missed a significant chunk of the 2023-24 season due to his participation in the NHL’s Player Assistance Program.

He recently got engaged to his girlfriend Jordan, and together, the two of them unveiled a new mental health initiative: From Us to You, which will aim to both publicly and privately share stories of those overcoming adversity and mental issues.

Laine, whose hockey career has fallen completely off since being dealt to Columbus (for Pierre-Luc Dubois, who has now been traded two more times since), had another disappointing season and has personally requested a change of scenery from Ohio.

While the guy who had some wondering if he was a better choice to go No. 1 overall to Toronto waits around to find a new home, the guy that has proven to be one of the league’s very best players of the better part of the past decade will get a shiny new letter on his sweater, new responsibilities and will become the official face of the NHL’s most historic franchise.

So much for the ‘Matthews or Laine?’ debate.