I would say he deserves 41, this is his 5th headshot in the span of less than 40 games, and he had about another 5 illegal hits before that span.

you forgot the 4 in front of the 0

Whole rest of the NHL and their fans
"Wilsons a total dirt bag"

Caps fans
"no he isn't"

at some point decent human beings need to stop making excuses.
If you are out on the ice trying to hurt people you don't belong there. That's not hockey. You wouldn't want your kids playing with that person, I damn well know that. Because the dude is a total a hole and has no business in sports.

100% right!! I'd give him minimum 41 the more I think about it...

If he doesn't score 50 goals and 90+ points this season, its because of injury. He was a point a game last season and missed 20 games. He's the best 5v5 goal scorer in hockey and he makes those around him better. He's 20 years old and took a last place team to the playoffs as a 19 year old rookie and lead that same team to a franchise record in points in only his 2nd season! I understand being a homer dude, but seriously, everyone knows Matthews is better than almost everyone in the game. He is already a top 10 player by most people. Look up TSN top 50 players and see where Matthews is listed in his 3rd season!

How many points did Kuztnesov have in the NHL when he was 20?

You're making yourself look awfully silly man.

“Matthews took his team” so nylander and marner weren’t in the team? Matthews even at a ppg would have finished = marner. You are a major homer if you think this dude is the only reason they were good. That’s actually really funny.

Kuzy was also a ppg player playing 82 games not 60 and a 1.38 ppg player in the playoffs while winning the cup. But I’ll wait to see how Matthews 2 points in 7 games makes him better since they in the regular season were ppg players.

Yeah let me check tsn for why Matthews who finishes #34 in points and didn’t lead his team even in points is rated high. Even if he was a ppg and could keep that pace all year kuzy would have had 1 more points than him.

Kuzy was playing in Russia. But we’re are talking right now why does it matter what he did then? Kuzy is better now. By your stupid logic nick backstrom at the age of 20 had 88 points so he right now is better than Matthews? Bc at the age of 20 he scored more points? I can’t talk to you it’s rwally becoming a waste of my time.

top 10 overall player or top 10 center? I think he is a top 10 center but not a top 10 overall

Just so we are clear 2016-17 maple leafs stats

Matthews 69 points
Jvr 62
Kadri 61
Nylander 61
Marner 61 played 5 less games
Bozak 55

Haha yeah mattews really lead this lost hopeless leafs team from last to playoffs. God you’re embarrassing

I can get on board with that. Top 10 center is way more realistic

Wilson sucks, lol

I have seen different sources rate him as top 5 centre and top 10 (7th I believe) overall. He's a beast and any of these dudes saying Wilson is a good contract and that Kuznetsov is a better player than Matthews are living in a cup related delusion. They haven't come off that high yet and are still in dream world.

He was a 19 year old, lol. 40 goals, lol. Played with two other rookies and scored 40 goals. Who did Kuznetsov score 30 points with his 1st full season? Last year is over dudes, wake up and realize its a new season and one who is being honest knows, Matthews will be one of the top players in the world for the next decade. Kuznetsov is exactly what he is going to be, a extremely talented and effective player. But Ovie's the one who drives the ship.

That statement alone proves kuzy is better. Thank you for playing

Yeah.....marner and nylander were also 19-20 and had 7-8 less points. Again stop overhyping this kid who hasn’t accomplished anything yet.... he won rookie of the year right? What else. He’s a solid young player who can score goals and is a ppg player. Yet you think he’s getting 50 goals and 90+ points.... that’s 20 + points and 10 more goals that’s he’s ever had.... but hey keep dreaming maybe it’ll happen

even if he is the 4th or 5th best center(no way is he top three, sid, McDavid, malkin are all definitely better currently) to be 7th overall that means four or even five centers would be in the top 7.

for what its worth i think nhl network had him as 10th best overall and 4th best center. Personally I think I would have him a bit lower especially on the overall list, maybe a tiny bit lower on the center list but that is arguable for anywhere between 4th and 8th. Kuznetsov was really good last year(especially in the playoffs but that can be somewhat of a small sample size) so I can see him also being top 10 for centers.

Wilson might be a good contract cause if he is constantly suspended that gets them off the hook for millions every single year haha.

Lol

He was on pace for 50+ before he got hurt last year. His 5v5 goal scoring rate was better than Ovie's was when Ovie scored 65. You do understand that admitting Matthews is a generational talent and an elite franchise centre doesn't make you a bad person. It just means you understand hockey exists outside of your beloved capitals.

Suspensions don't affect cap hit. So you'll be wasting 5 million a year worth of cap dollars on a 4th liner who gets suspended for being an idiot all the time. I appreciate guys who play with an edge but gutless blind side hits and obvious head hunting having no place in the game and players that do that, should be run out of the league as fast as possible. That hit was a disgrace to hockey and he should get a huge suspension.

you understand using averages and ppg to support points is a weak argument. ovechkin ,the opening week of the nhl season last year, was on pace for 350 goals....guess what he didn't get 350 goals. also spooner player less games but averaged .74 ppg like nylander... I guess they are equivalent right? Matthews will never break 60 goals thats laughable let him get to 50 first...... man you are in love with Matthews and hes literally accomplished nothing as an nhl player its funny

Nothing as a player he says, LOL!!!!!

Look dude, I understand that you love your players, Washington has a lot of really good players. I am not taking anything away from them, but saying Kuznetsov is better than Matthews is just silly. He didn't win the Con Smythe, because Ovie willed the caps to victory. He lead the team and gave everything he had to win and it was well deserved. If TO wins the cup, (Nothing is guaranteed) Matthews will be at the heart of that, because he is the best player in Toronto. Everyone who watches hockey knows this, Tavares is of course amazing and Marner and Nylander are also extremely great players but Matthews can just do stuff they can't. He's a 20 year 6'3" 220 pound monster who can skate better than most. I give it a month before you lower your head and realize that despite Kuznetsov being as good as he is, he just isn't at Matthews level. THE KID IS 20 and is already a top 5 centre in the league.

Be proud of the cup you guys won, personally, I was thrilled to see them win. Just don't let yourself get silly, every year a team wins the cup and almost every year the team that wins it makes a lot of bad decisions contract wise after they win. Rewarding guys for what they did but failing to see that, they are highly unlikely to ever reach that level again. (Wilson is not worth 5 million dollars, literally everyone outside of Washington knows this)

So instead of jumping on Matthews, which is hilarious all in itself, just look at what he offers objectively. Take your emotions out of it, we all get it you love the guy, and just look at what he actually brings to the table and see what others making similar money are making or what similar players to Wilson are making. If you do that, its a terrible contract because Wilson is a bottom 6 grinder, they don't deserve more than 2 million.

I would ask you to also "Take your emotions out of it, we all get it you hate(edited) the guy, and just look at what he actually brings to the table" wilson still has a lot of growing up to do and maybe this will wake him up, but to trash him the way you do is crazy. He was able to keep up with top end talent which is rare for Matt Martins and whoever you compared him to.....its okay to hate wilson doesn't mean he isn't good. now to the real point I would have loved wilson at 3.5-4 million. imo thats what his actually worth. rumor is that he was willing to sign 2yr x 3.25-3.5 million deal , but that capitals felt he was worth locking up long term and like I've said its too early to say if this is bad or not.. as of right now im happy hes a capital and that they locked him. he was a major piece in winning the cup and it doesn't hurt that he has chemistry with kuzy who is future of the caps.

"Wilson is not worth 5 million dollars, literally everyone outside of Washington knows this" everyone on this site said the same thing bout Kuznetsov last season and the guy should have won the conn but ovi won it much like Sid did his first time.....its more of a legacy thing than a who actually earned it thing

I disagree completely with you on this one. I thought that Kuznetsov's deal was perhaps a little rich but I also thought he could easily earn that kind of money. Kuznetsov has a tonne of talent but was a bit of a drifter at times in his first few seasons. Wilson is exactly what he is, he is a big, fast, wrecking ball who got the good fortune of playing with Ovie and Kuznetsov, they made him look good. He's a guy who will score 30-40 points despite playing with two stars (that is if he doesn't get bumped down once he returns) which just isn't worth close to 4 million let a lone 5 million. He doesn't really stick handle, he doesn't have a great shot and he doesn't make the best decisions with the puck often enough. Wilson is a bottom 6 winger, that is his ceiling and he's being paid like he is an above average top 6 winger. That is why its a terrible contract, I don't hate the guy, I hate the contract. Wilson is a guy you love to have on your team.....usually. He's kind of luck what Darcy Tucker was back in the day. The only difference is Tucker was way smaller and also WAY more skilled. Wilson has never been a skill guy, never in his career. The contract is a betting that he has untapped potential he literally has never shown signs of.

see I disagree wilson only played last half of the season with ovi and kuzy and all the play all playoffs...based off that small sample size id say you are wrong but if you want to base it off the previous years you'd be correct in what you are saying

What is the wisest course? Assuming the small sample size is accurate or the huge sample size that tells the story we all are seeing here. Tie Domi played most of one season on Sundin's wing and scored 15 goals. Did he get rewarded with a contract like this? No of course not, that's insane, he's a goon and everyone knew that. Wilson is far better than Domi, before you jump down my throat on that. However, Wilson hasn't really showed that he is anything more than a bottom 6 winger. Even over his small sample size with Ovie and Kuznetsov, his stats are well below impressive. Every year in the playoffs, some guy becomes a hero and gets a ridiculous contract he couldn't possibly earn. Fernando Pisani, Matt Beleskey, Marcus Kruger, etc. Wilson is the newest one in a long line of guys getting way too much money after a run to the cup.

below average? .75 ppg in the playoffs is average? again in the past he was a 4th line guy who player 5-8 minutes. realistically he should played In Hershey and developed his skills then came up but he never got a chance to do this. ask yourself this question if wilson get 45-50 points and caps win another cup and he gets 15-18 points in the playoffs is it worth it then?