{coyotes} Which teams need Auston Matthews the most?

 

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Auston Matthews' decision to play his first professional hockey season for the Zurich Lions in Switzerland has left no doubt that he's the No. 1 prospect for the June NHL draft.

Despite missing 14 games with an injury, the American-born 18-year-old center finished fourth in the goal scoring race with 24 goals in 36 games. The league's leading scorer, Martschini Lino, had 26 goals in 50 games.

His 1.24 points-per-game average ranked second to former NHL player Pierre-Marc Bouchard (1.37) among Swiss National League players who appeared in 35 or more games. Matthews finished 10th with 46 points.

"He wasn't just a good player for an 18-year-old – he was the league's best player," said former Calgary Flames general manager Craig Button, now a draft analyst. "He was dominant."

Now, the only question is which NHL jersey Matthews will wear next season. Here are the six NHL teams that need Matthews the most:

1. Arizona Coyotes (6.5% chance of winning lottery based on Friday's standings): Could there be a better marketing situation for the Coyotes than having a potential superstar who was born and raised in Arizona? Matthews' mother was born in Mexico and his father is from California. The family moved to Scottsdale, Ariz., and Matthews grew up a Coyotes fan.

The Coyotes are still trying to sell the game to fans and having a local hero would help. The Coyotes rank second-to-last in attendance, according to hockeydb.com. Adding Matthews to a young core group that includes Oliver Ekman-Larsson, Max Domi and Anthony Duclair would be intriguing.

2. Columbus Blue Jackets (7.5%): Matthews could replace center Ryan Johansen, who was traded to the Nashville Predators for Seth Jones.

When the Blue Jackets entered the NHL, they were an instant hit in Columbus. But too many non-playoff years has left fans discouraged. Adding Matthews to the Columbus roster would give the fan base the same emotional lift that Jack Eichel has given Buffalo fans.

3. Carolina Hurricanes (3%):  The Hurricanes just traded away captain Eric Staal, the face of the franchise for many years. Matthews can be the new one. He has the potential to be a more dominant offensive player than Staal. The Hurricanes are last in attendance, averaging just over 12,000 fans per game.  The arrival of Matthews could put a charge into their season-ticket base.

4. Toronto Maple Leafs (20%):  The Maple Leafs are in the midst of a pronounced rebuilding effort. Matthews could reinvigorate a franchise, just as Sidney Crosby did for the Pittsburgh Penguins and Connor McDavid is doing this season in Edmonton.

Imagine the hype Matthews would receive if he played in a major market such as Toronto. He would become the main building block around talented young players such as William Nylander, Mitch Marner, Morgan Rielly and Kasperi Kapanen, among others.

5. New Jersey Devils (2.5%): The Devils are the NHL's lowest-scoring team, and they've never really had a potential superstar forward quite like Matthews. This is a franchise known primarily for goalie Martin Brodeur and quality defensemen. Maybe Matthews is the player who could fill up their arena.

6. Any team except the Edmonton Oilers (88.5%): It's clear that fans are weary of seeing the Oilers pick No. 1 overall, as they did last June when they landed McDavid. They have picked No. 1 overall four times in six seasons. If the season ended today, the Oilers would have an 11.5% chance of landing Matthews.

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