Auston Matthews, Leafs face Flyers in clash of contenders

Auston Matthews aims to continue his latest hot streak Thursday when the Toronto Maple Leafs visit the Philadelphia Flyers.

Matthews has enjoyed a pleasant start to 2026, scoring six times in three games since the calendar turned to January. He tallied twice Saturday against the host New York Islanders to become the franchise's all-time leading goal scorer, then added another goal in Tuesday's 4-1 home win over the Florida Panthers.

Before the game against Florida, the team honored Matthews for passing Mats Sundin (420) on Toronto's all-time goal-scoring list.

"All of it means a lot. It's special to wear this jersey. It's an absolute honor," Matthews said. "To have Mats come in, to have so many players before us that have paved the way and worn this jersey. I'm very appreciative."

Matthews has 21 goals this season, putting him on pace for a 10th straight 30-goal campaign to begin his career. He has 28 points (12 goals, 16 assists) in 22 career games against the Flyers.

Joseph Woll made 31 saves against the Panthers to lift the team to its fifth win in seven games (5-0-2).

"I thought our goaltending was great. Those are the kinds of efforts we need on nights like this, against opponents like this," Matthews said.

It helps to have defenseman Brandon Carlo (foot) back in the lineup for the first time in nearly two months.

"Carlo, great having him back tonight," Toronto coach Craig Berube said. "I thought he played well. He's been out for a long time, but I thought he did a really good job tonight."

Woll and Carlo must be up to the task against a Philadelphia team that also comes in having won five of seven (5-2-0). The Flyers have 24 goals in those five victories.

Coach Rick Tocchet's team is coming off an emotional 5-2 win over the Anaheim Ducks on Tuesday in which Trevor Zegras scored twice against his former squad.

"The crowd was outstanding," Tocchet said. "I just remembered the days when I played, that's a loud building tonight. They were awesome. ... That's playoff hockey and we feel like we're a playoff team."

Nikita Grebenkin and Cam York each added a goal and an assist for Philadelphia, which sits at 22-12-7 at the midway point, third in the Metropolitan Division entering Wednesday. The Flyers have missed the playoffs in each of the last five seasons.

"We don't want to be satisfied here," captain Sean Couturier said. "We've got to keep pushing, take it to another level."

This is the second of three meetings. The Maple Leafs won 5-2 in Philadelphia on Nov. 1 as Matthews scored a goal, giving him at least one point in 12 consecutive games against the Flyers.

"I thought just a really consistent effort right from the drop of the puck," Matthews said after that matchup, adding, "I thought we played the way that we need to play to be successful over 60 minutes, and thought that's what showed tonight."