Auston Matthews, the captain of the Toronto Maple Leafs, has faced criticism for his performance this NHL season. His gesture of gifting a hockey stick to San Jose Sharks' Will Smith has sparked mixed reactions among fans.

Maple Leafs and Team USA captain Auston Matthews admitted that the sting of the loss to Team Canada is still lingering with him.

Team USA will face Canada in the 4 Nations Face-Off final on Thursday. NHL insider Mike Johnson sees this as a big opportunity for Auston Matthews, one of the NHL's top goal-scorers.

Toronto Maple Leafs captain Auston Matthews stood silently after the 4 Nations Face-Off concluded. Edmonton Oilers superstar Connor McDavid won gold for Canada

Team USA takes on Canada in the 4 Nations Face-Off championship game. Follow The Post’s live updates from Boston.

Auston Matthews, one of the most talented players in the NHL and the captain of the Toronto Maple Leafs, has been in the centre of controversy as fans believe he has not been able to perform well in this season.

Auston Matthews and the Toronto Maple Leafs received a powerful message from a star on the roster after the 6-5 overtime win against the Pittsburgh Penguins.

Auston Matthews' Team USA lost 3-2 in overtime against Team Canada in the 4 Nations Face-Off final at TD Garden on Thursday.

Team USA captain Auston Matthews achieved a major feat in the 4 Nations Final despite the loss to Team Canada.

Matthews, who is also captain of the Toronto Maple Leafs, finished the game with two assists, four shots on goal and three blocks in 20:47 of ice time.

The No. 1 picks from the 2015 and 2016 NHL drafts, respectively, McDavid and Matthews were teased with a version of it as teammates on the made-up Team North America youth squad at the 2016 World Cup of Hockey. But until the 4 Nations Face-Off, they had never played for the respective countries at true best-on-best.

Auston Matthews picked up assists on both USA's goals but the Americans fell 3-2 in overtime in the 4 Nations Face-Off Final to Canada.