William Nylander didn’t think Auston Matthews had changed much from last year when he rocked the NHL as a rookie.



“He’s been dominant,” Nylander said of Matthews so far this season. “But he was dominant last year. I don’t know what he’s doing that’s so much different from last year.”



A number of his teammates would argue otherwise — that, in fact, Matthews has been even more dominant as a sophomore for the Maple Leafs. Plenty of numbers exist to support that claim.



Tampa-bound for his second All-Star Game in as many years this weekend, Matthews is scoring and producing more offence in his second season. He’s drawing more penalties, winning a lot more faceoffs, and the Leafs are scoring a ridiculous share of goals when he’s on the ice. They’re generating more chances than last year, too, including those in the most dangerous areas of the ice.



“I feel...