Maple Leafs' Matthews in vs. Lightning and shooting for 70

TAMPA — He's in.

As if there was any doubt.

Yes, Auston Matthews — stalled at 69 goals and hungry for 70 — will play in an otherwise meaningless Game 82 for the Toronto Maple Leafs and Tampa Bay Lightning Wednesday night at Amalie Arena.

Shooters shoot.

After being noncommittal on the topic Tuesday night in Sunrise, head coach Sheldon Keefe confirmed Wednesday afternoon that Matthews will play with one goal and one game to go.

The Leafs' decision makers briefly discussed dressing seven defencemen and scratching a forward.

"The 70-goal thing aside, Auston's playing good and feeling good. If I had more guys to sit or rest, he wouldn't be at the top of the list for me, quite honestly," Keefe said. "In terms of Auston, there wasn't much a discussion there."

Matthews, 26, has already secured his third Rocket Richard Trophy and demolished his old franchise record for most goals in single Leafs season.

But his teammates, his fans, and the man himself have had their sights on a goal-scoring milestone that hasn't been touched in 31 years, when Teemu Selanne and Alexander Mogilny hit 70 in 1992-93. Only eight players in NHL history have scored 70.

"For 34 to be able to get 70 and to be able to say you were in the building, as a fan, would be super cool to see," Tampa Bay coach Jon Cooper told reporters. 

"Problem is, I'm the coach of the other team. So, we have to find a way to prevent that. But he's done it 69 times against a whole bunch of other teams trying to prevent it, so it's hard to do. We'll see what happens."

Because the outcome of the regular-season finale has zero bearing on playoff positioning — Toronto is locked into a series with Boston; Tampa is getting hyped for an intrastate battle with Florida — the Maple Leafs could have elected to rest Matthews and dress extra defencemen.

Keefe did exactly that down the stretch with Matthews and other minutes-munching stars down the stretch in 2023 and 2022, thus prioritizing rest and avoiding risk of injury with Game 1 penciled in for Saturday at TD Garden.

Captain John Tavares acknowledges that, when used judiciously, load management "can be very forward-thinking." What a hockey player should not do, however, is hop over the boards thinking solely about personal safety, he argued. 

"I personally don't think you can play the game that way," Tavares said. "It's too competitive. It puts you in the wrong mindset."

Veteran defencemen Morgan Rielly, Jake McCabe, and Joel Edmundson are projected to sit Game 82 and rest for the playoffs.

Matthews isn't the only all-star forward targeting a big, juicy number Wednesday.

Tampa's Hart Trophy candidate, Art Ross frontrunner Nikita Kucherov, has piled 99 assists and needs just one more to join Connor McDavid, Wayne Gretzky, Bobby Orr, and Mario Lemieux in the exclusive 100 Club.

Meanwhile, William Nylander has piled up 97 points and needs just three to crack 100 for the first time in his career. 

The ice-cold Nylander hasn't scored a goal in 10 games, a span during which he has just three helpers.

"Willy is known for his production," teammate Nick Robertson said. "That's what the big money is for — for him to produce. Every player goes through times like this."

Wednesday is the last night to reach milestones and inject meaning into what should be a rare no-hitter featuring Toronto and Tampa.

Backup Matt Tomkins (.891) is the projected starter for the Lightning, while third-stringer Martin Jones gets the nod for Toronto.

"If we were going to coach differently, Sheldon and I would both pull our goalie in the first five minutes and make it 6-on-5, stats don't go against them," Cooper said, smiling. 

"Just get [the milestones] over with. Because, in the end, would anyone really remember that? Probably not. But it does make for great TV."