Auston Matthews vs. Matthew Tkachuk: Head-to-head stats, awards for best American-born NHL players

The Maple Leafs-Panthers second-round matchup is an intriguing one for a number of reasons. But one of the underlying storylines to watch is the battle between two of the best current American-born players — Auston Matthews and Matthew Tkachuk.

There are plenty of stellar Americans in today's NHL, but Matthews and Tkachuk sit at the top. The Leafs sniper and Panthers winger are two of the biggest stars in the league and two of the faces of American hockey.

Both Matthews and Tkachuk took irregular routes to the NHL in terms of American standards. While a majority of the USA players come through the NCAA system, Tkachuk elected to play major junior hockey in Canada while Matthews played professionally in Switzerland in his draft year.

MORE: Maple Leafs vs. Panthers second-round preview for 2023 NHL playoffs

The pair were a part of the top of the 2016 NHL Draft class. Matthews was selected first overall by the Maple Leafs, while Tkachuk went No. 6 to the Flames. Both skaters began their NHL careers at the same time, making their respective teams right after being drafted and playing in the 2016-17 season.

While both are highly skilled and have proven they can be 100-point scorers, they are also different players. Matthews is a sniper and the Leafs go-to goal scorer, doing his damage with the puck on his stick and letting it fly. Tkachuk is a hard-nosed forechecker who loves to get to the front of the net and use his impressive set of hands to get his goals. 

Matthews and Tkachuk are going to play major factors in the Leafs-Panthers series. The two Americans already made massive impacts in the first round to advance, and are aiming to do the same in the second round. 

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But who is the better player of the two, thus wearing the crown of best current American-born player? The Sporting News dives into the comparison of the two.  

Auston Matthews vs. Matthew Tkachuk: Head-to-head stats

The 2023 second-round series is the first time these two have played against one another in the postseason, but it's far from the first time we've seen these two in action. 

In total, Tkachuk has played the Maple Leafs 23 times in his career, going against Matthews in 22 of those matchups. The Leafs center missed a contest against the Flames in 2018, so we won't count that toward their stats. 

Notably, Matthews and Tkachuk went head-to-head nine times during the shortened 2020-21 season when the Flames and Leafs were in the all-Canadian North Division.

Matthews has gotten the better of Tkachuk head-to-head. The Toronto star has nearly double the amount of points as the Florida winger in their battles. What also stands out, is that out of Tkachuk's nine career points in games against Matthews, six of those points came on the power play. 

Auston Matthews vs. Matthew Tkachuk: Regular season stats

Both Matthews and Tkachuk have very impressive careers to date. Matthews has been over a point-per-game player, averaging 1.13 PPG in his career. Tkachuk is just below a point-per-game, coming in at 0.96. 

As expected, Matthews has the edge in goals with over 100 more than Tkachuk, but the Panthers forward has more career assists. He also has more power play points, but not by much.

Unsurprisingly, Tkachuk also has Matthews beaten in career hits, with more than double that of the Leafs center. However, Matthews has Tkachuk beat in blocked shots with nearly triple the amount. 

Auston Matthews vs. Matthew Tkachuk: Playoff stats

While both Tkachuk and Matthews are still early in their careers, the two have frequented the postseason. 

Matthews has over 40 playoff games under his belt, while Tkachuk has over 35. The Leafs star has more points and a higher points-per-game rate than the Panthers forward. In fact, he has Tkachuk beaten in almost every offensive category other than shooting percentage. 

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The most surprising stat in this list is the hits. Matthews has over 40 more hits than Tkachuk does, despite that not being a main part of his game. Sure, Matthews has played in more postseason contests, but you would think that with the intensity and physicality of the playoffs, Tkachuk would run away with that category as he has for their career marks. 

Auston Matthews vs. Matthew Tkachuk: Awards and accolades

When it comes to hardware, it is very clear who has the advantage. 

While Tkachuk has yet to win an NHL award, Matthews has a number. He won the 2017 Calder Trophy for Rookie of the Year and won back-to-back Rocket Richard Trophies in 2021 and 2022, leading the league in goals. Last year, Matthews earned both the Hart Trophy and the Ted Lindsay Award as league MVP. 

The lone edge Tkachuk has Matthews beat in is All-Star MVPs. The Panthers forward earned the honor this year, while Matthews has never earned that recognition in his six All-Star games.