Toronto Maple Leafs centre Auston Matthews (34) celebrates after scoring his third goal of the game past Minnesota Wild goaltender Filip Gustavsson (32) during third period NHL hockey action, in Toronto, Saturday, Oct. 14, 2023. Matthews has been named the NHL's first star of its opening week of the 2023-24 season after he posted hat tricks in the Maple Leafs' first two games. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Frank Gunn
NEW YORK – Toronto centre Auston Matthews has been named the NHL’s first star of its opening week of the 2023-24 season after he posted hat tricks in the Maple Leafs’ first two games.
Vancouver Canucks centre Elias Pettersson took second-star honours after posting a goal and five assists in two games, while Pittsburgh centre Evgeni Malkin was named third star with two goals and four assists in three games.
Matthews became just the second player since the NHL’s inaugural 1917-18 campaign to record a hat trick in each of his first two games of a season.
He scored two of his three goals in the final five minutes of regulation to erase a two-goal deficit in Toronto’s season-opening 6-5 shootout win over Montreal on Wednesday.
Matthews followed that with three goals in a 7-4 win over Minnesota on Saturday.
Pettersson opened the season with a goal and three assists in Vancouver’s 8-1 rout of visiting Edmonton on Wednesday, and followed with two assists in the Canucks’ 4-3 win in Saturday’s rematch in Edmonton.
Malkin’s week was highlighted by a two-goal, two-assist performance in a 4-0 win at Washington on Friday.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 16, 2023.
