Maple Leafs legends discuss Matthews, Stanley Cup chances

TORONTO -- The Toronto Maple Leafs (25-10-2) have 52 points through 37 games and on pace to finish with 115, which would break the team record of 105 set last season.

Center Auston Matthews has 34 points (19 goals, 15 assists) in 23 games, and is on pace for 100 points despite being able to play in at most 68 games this season.
Those numbers are a couple of reasons why there is as much excitement in Toronto about the Maple Leafs as there has been in a long time.
Just ask former Toronto players Mats Sundin, Wendel Clark, Lanny McDonald and Rick Vaive, who took part in a roundtable discussion with NHL.com to discuss this season's Maple Leafs.
Sundin (5), Clark (15), McDonald (19) and Vaive (20) were on
The One Hundred list as part of the Maple Leafs centennial season
celebrations of 2016-17. The One Hundred list is the result of rankings submitted by a 31-member committee made up of prominent members of the hockey community, including a public fan vote that counted as the 31st member.
Sundin is the Maple Leafs all-time leader in goals (420) and points (987). He was elected to the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2012.

Vaive is fifth in goals by a Maple Leafs player with 299 and produced three of the five 50-plus goal seasons in franchise history. (1981-82, 1982-83, 1983-84).
Clark is fourth in power play goals (79), behind Sundin (124), Darryl Sittler (120) and Vaive (90), and third in penalty minutes (1,535) on the Maple Leafs list. He serves as a team ambassador and remains a fan favorite.
McDonald is one of the most popular Maple Leafs of all-time, thanks to his lightning-quick release and his signature curly mustache. He was elected to the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1992 and now serves as its chairman.
Can this team win the Maples Leafs their first Stanley Cup since 1967? Can Matthews become an all-time great? And how kooky would the streets of Toronto be if the team won the title?
Here's the panel's take.
Is this the best chance the Maple Leafs have in a long time to end their Stanley Cup drought, which stands at 51 years and counting?
Sundin: I think expectations should be high like they are. It's been a long, long, long time since the Toronto Maple Leafs, the fans of the Toronto Maple Leafs and this city have had this kind of talent pool and the type of youthful skill that should be around for a long time. The city should be excited about the hockey club and what's going to come for the next few years.
Vaive:It's great. They're probably hoping the salary cap goes up a lot more than it has with the group of up-and-coming kids they have right now. It's always a challenge to keep your best players together. If they can keep their best guys together there's a lot of talent there and this team can do some amazing things. The key is keeping them together. That'll be the biggest challenge.
McDonald:I think when you look at their top three [centers], John Tavares, Auston Matthews, Nazem Kadri, they can play with anyone in the League. Their defense, they're better than people think they are. They have great goaltending. And their speed is next to none. So, you know what? Let them loose, let them have fun. This town will go crazy … and it already has.
Clark: It's great. There's a great group of young, talented players that is coming together at the right time. When you look at the teams that win, there's always a group of players that are around the same age. It's been awesome to watch this group of guys behind us playing. We're in the building a lot now, and it's fun being a part of this.
He's produced a limited body of work through his first 2 1/2 seasons in the NHL, but does Auston Matthews have the potential to be the best player ever to wear a Toronto Maple Leafs jersey?
Clark: I think there are a lot of guys who have the potential to be really good on the team. Auston is one of them, but there are a few more who could put together memorable careers with the combination of longevity and health. There's a big window right now. That's why they're so good right now. They have lots of potential in that dressing room.
Vaive: Like Wendel said, I don't think there is any question about the talent level. I think the question is, how long can they play and how long can they sustain that level over the years. Because when you look at Dave Keon and you look at what Mats did, George Armstrong, those guys played for a long time. For Matthews and these other kids, they're going to have to play 14, 15, 16, 18 years, and consistently play at the level that they are, in order to be at the same level and status as those guys.

Sundin: There is no doubt Matthews has proven already that he already is one of the best players in the League and he has the potential to be for a very long time.
McDonald: Well, first of all, because Mats is standing right beside me, no one is as good as Mats was. (Laughs) Wendel and Rick shot the puck way better than anyone else. But Matthews has this great ability not only to shoot the puck but get it away extremely quickly. He's just going to get better every year. And he could be one of the best all-time Maple Leafs. But as Wendel has said, you've got a lot of guys to go through. And to be able to do it for 10, 12, 15 years, then we'll decide.
All four of you played and lived in Toronto through good times and bad with the Maple Leafs. What would this city be like if/when the Maple Leafs were to win the Cup?
McDonald:This city will go crazy. You look at what happened with the New York Rangers (in 1994), when it took them 50-plus years to win a Stanley Cup, knowing full well that it was 1967 when this franchise last won a Cup. You look at the NBA's Toronto Raptors and how excited the city is when they're in the playoffs, it's going to be 10-fold when the Maple Leafs get to that point and go through the ceiling. People will go nuts.
Sundin: I agree with Lanny. Being a hockey player, there can't be any place to compete for a Stanley Cup and win a Stanley Cup than the city of Toronto while wearing a Toronto Maple Leafs sweater. It's impossible to predict what would happen to this city. Would it even be here the next day?
Vaive: There probably wouldn't be any windows left on the stores on Yonge Street. I mean, the CFL's Toronto Argonauts won the Grey Cup when we were playing in 1983 and they broke all the windows on Yonge Street. I can't even imagine what it'll be if and when the Leafs win the Stanley Cup. And when they do it'll be mayhem.
Clark: It's a workman-like town. Two o'clock, everyone shuts it down (Laughs). Get up at 6, two-hour rush-hour, everyone will be working at 9 a.m. Just another day at the office (Laughs again). I had to change the answer. They're all the same. Joking aside, my building is across the street from Scotiabank Arena so I'll be calling the police telling people to keep it down, I'm trying to get some sleep up here. OK, I'm just having some fun here. The real story: This town will go crazy. We all know that. And it'll be cool to see.