Balancing Auston Matthews’ rest a key in remainder of Maple Leafs schedule

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Sheldon Keefe would love to see Auston Matthews score 70 goals this season.

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But for the Maple Leafs coach, if his superstar centre reaches the milestone, it’s not going to come at the expense of the team or the player himself.

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“I’m not concerned about 70 goals at all,” Keefe said on Wednesday, hours ahead of the Leafs game against the Tampa Bay Lightning at Scotiabank Arena.

“I’m concerned about having having him and our team ready to go for playoffs. Like you saw the other night (in the win against Florida on Monday), he gets two and those are two important goals for us in the game. He’s going to contribute that way. That’s what he has done all season for us. (But 70 goals) is not our focus, not my focus at all.”

The Leafs have eight games remaining in their regular season schedule and if they earn at least one point on Wednesday, they will clinch a playoff spot for the eighth consecutive year. Once the spot is wrapped up, that could determine whether Matthews gets further rest in the final couple of weeks, for example, sitting a game or two.

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The rest is happening already, as Matthews has not taken part in the two optional morning skates this week. Since the win in Buffalo on Saturday, he has been on the ice just for the game against the Panthers.

“I’ve talked to Auston, (the goals) are not the focus for him,” Keefe said. “He wants to finish the season strong and he wants to be feeling good, he wants to have energy through this last stretch and going into playoffs. That’s really the goal for our team, is to have our game in order and be as healthy and rested as possible as we finish this last push.”

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The immediate goal is to win a fourth consecutive game. Joseph Woll was the first Leafs goalie off the ice in the morning, an indication he will start. The Lightning will have Andrei Vasilevskiy in net.

Morgan Rielly will be in the Leafs lineup after the defenceman missed the past four games with an upper-body injury. The expected scratch as a result would be Mark Giordano.

“I feel good,” Rielly said. “You want to get back in and help the team, try to pick up where you left off. It’s not always easy coming back, but it has not been that long, so I don’t expect any issues.”

For the Leafs, a good late-season challenge to help them prepare for the playoffs will be defending against Tampa’s Nikita Kucherov. The Hart Trophy candidate is tied for the NHL scoring lead with Colorado’s Nathan MacKinnon. Both have 127 points heading into Wednesday’s action.

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The Lightning has not yet clinched a playoff spot, but it’s in a comfortable spot in the first wildcard. The Washington Capitals and Detroit Red Wings are seven points back.

As for Matthews, he could reach 70 goals even with some rest. At 62 on the season, it’s not out of the question.

“No surprise,” Lightning captain Steven Stamkos said of Matthews’ prolific run. “He’s probably, for sure, the premier goal scorer in the league right now. You just try to limit the chances. You’re never going to not give a guy like that any chances. 

“Another amazing season for Auston and it’s pretty special to see what he is doing.”

tkoshan@postmedia.com

X: @koshtorontosun

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