Matthews, Marner highlight Maple Leafs' quarter-century team

This iteration of the Toronto Maple Leafs clearly has some generational talent.

The NHL unveiled their picks for the Maple Leafs' quarter-century team, and three players on the 2024-25 squad got first-team nods.

Forwards Auston Matthews and Mitch Marner, as well as defenceman Morgan Rielly, joined legends Mats Sundin, Tomas Kaberle and Ed Balfour as the Leafs' quarter-century first team.

The quarter-century team is made up of five skaters (three forwards, two defencemen) and one goalie who played for the franchise after Jan. 1, 2000.

Matthews, who was named captain ahead of the 2024-25 season, has made his mark on the Maple Leafs since joining the team in 2016. In 586 games over eight and a half seasons, the 27-year-old has 379 goals and 672 points, collecting one Hart Trophy and three Rocket Richard trophies in that time.

Marner, who was drafted in 2015, has also been with the team since 2016 and has scored 207 goals and 690 points in 615 games.

Sundin, who was with the team from 1994 to 2008, when he joined the Vancouver Canucks in free agency. In 981 games with the Maple Leafs, he scored 420 goals and 987 points.

Kaberle, who was a late-round pick in 1994 by the Maple Leafs, spent the first 12 seasons of his career in Toronto. In 878 games, he accumulated 520 points, which ranks second in franchise defencemen scoring behind only Borje Salming.

Rielly, the longest-tenured Maple Leaf on the current squad, has played his entire 830-game career with Toronto and registered 490 points in that time.

Belfour, played for three seasons with the Maple Leafs between 2002 and 2006, and averaged a .910 save percentage and a 2.56 goals-against average during that time.

Phil Kessel, William Nylander, John Tavares, Bryan McCabe, Dion Phaneuf and Curtis Joseph were named to the second team.

Current Maple Leafs defenceman Oliver Ekman-Larsson was named to the Arizona Coyotes' quarter-century team on Jan. 1.