Auston Matthews sounds off on Coyotes' situation

By now, you've heard the news that the Arizona Coyotes are on the verge of being moved to Salt Lake City, Utah. It would finally bring an end to what has been a frustrating and frankly, embarrassing, last several years in the desert. 

But there is one player today in the National Hockey League who owes his career to the franchise, and that would be none other than Toronto Maple Leafs superstar goal scorer Auston Matthews.

Growing up in Arizona, Matthews was a fan of the then-name Phoenix Coyotes, and would be one of the few fans in attendance at their home games. In fact, a young Matthews was in attendance at Jobing.com Arena during the 2005-06 season when a then-rookie Alexander Ovechkin scored an unbelievable goal against Coyotes goaltender Brian Boucher: 

Ironically, Matthews just broke Ovechkin's record of most goals scored in a season since Mario Lemieux's 69 goals in 1995-96;  he's currently sitting at 68 goals, which bested Ovechkin's 65 in 2007-08.

But understandably, Matthews still has a soft spot for the team that he grew up watching as a youngster and that inspired him to become a professional.

"Obviously, selfishly, growing up there with them being a big part of me getting into hockey, you know, I’d love for them to figure it out, but you kind of understand the position the NHL’s in as well," Matthews said. 

Unfortunately for Matthews, he may not be getting his wish for the Coyotes to stay in Arizona. 

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