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Toronto Maple Leafs star forward Auston Matthews achieved a remarkable feat by scoring his 66th goal of the season in a 5-2 victory against the New Jersey Devils at Prudential Center on Tuesday.
With this goal, Matthews surpassed Alex Ovechkin's record of 65 goals in a single season set in 2007-08, making him the active player with the most goals in a single season. Last season, Connor McDavid came close with an impressive 64 tallies.
Notably, Auston Matthews became the first player to reach 66 goals since Mario Lemieux potted 69 for Pittsburgh in 1995-96.
Fans immediately took to social media to react to Matthews' latest piece of history:
One fan tweeted: "Bro, he's a beast fr. ain't no one stopping him tho. ngl, should start an OF or sum'n." in awe of Matthews' dominance this season.
Here are some more fan reactions to Auston Matthews’s record on X/Twitter:
"Simply the best, better than all the rest...MVP!" another fan twetted.
"I was told Mcdavid, Kucherov, and Mackinnon were better". a fan wrote.
"And most in the cap era*". another fan wrote.
"GOAT". a user worte.
"GREATEST LEAF OF ALL TIME". a fan wrote.
"Best goal scorer of the 21st Century." another fan said.
"I really wish a Canucks player could do this! Wow what an incredible season Matthews is having. Always will enjoy watching him score goals. Just an amazing shot." a user said on X.
The goal was Matthews' 104th point of the year, just two shy of the career-high 106 points he registered last season. With four games remaining for Toronto, he has a chance at reaching the 70-goal mark – something only seven other players have accomplished in NHL history.
Auston Matthews’s 66th goal helps Maple Leafs beat Devils 5-2
The game was tied 1-1 after the first period with goals from New Jersey's Nico Hischier and Toronto's William Nylander. Hischier split the Leaf's defense and scored on a backhander while Nylander buried a rebound.
In the second period, Dawson Mercer put the Devils ahead 2-1 with a power play goal at 5:17, scoring on a backhand shot just inside the left post. But the Maple Leafs stormed back late in the frame, getting goals from Tyler Bertuzzi and Mark Giordano just nine seconds apart.
Bertuzzi wristed home a shot from the bottom of the right circle at 15:00 before Giordano blasted a slap shot past Devils goalie Jake Allen at 15:09. The quick strikes gave Toronto a 3-2 lead after two.
In the third, Auston Matthews extended the Leafs' advantage to 4-2 with his 66th of the campaign, a shot top shelf from the right circle at 7:33. Bertuzzi added an empty-netter at 18:47 to seal the 5-2 victory.
Rookie Joseph Woll made 18 saves in the win for Toronto. Allen stopped 32 shots in defeat for New Jersey.
With the loss, the Devils were mathematically eliminated from playoff contention this season.
