NHL insider leaks real reason Leafs gave captaincy to Auston Matthews

Johnston was ultimately not the first to report the news as fellow TSN reporter Darren Dreger dropped the bombshell on X before anyone else. He also revealed that Tavares was heavily involved in the process himself, implying that Tavares is okay with passing the role onto someone else. Perhaps he even told management that his preference was for Auston Matthews to succeed him.

However, this in itself does not tell us why the move was made. For that information, we have to go back to Johnston. While he would not explicitly state the exact reason, he noted that discussions about this move came up almost immediately following the team's game seven loss to the Boston Bruins in overtime. It would seem to indicate then, that that loss was the final straw for this leadership group, even id the roster has remained largely the same.

Johnston has since published a more in-depth article on the move on the Athletic. There, he notes how the timing of the move could make sense as Matthews is coming of a career season, where he set multiple Leafs franchise records, including single season goals, with 69.

Since the Leafs drafted Matthews 1st overall in 2016, he has never failed to impress fans. From his very first NHL game where he scored 4 times to his record-setting 69 goal season, he's already done it all, except when it comes to the playoffs. He has 368 career goals and 649 points through 562 games. However, he has just 23 career playoff goals and 48 points in 55 games. Will adding the C to his jersey help him lift his team up in the second season? Will he cement his legacy as one of the greatest Leafs of all time with a Stanley Cup victory? Stick around to find out.

Source: HockeyReference
Auston Matthews Career Statistics