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The occasion of Toronto Maple Leafs fans booing their own captain on home ice — once unfathomable — came to fruition Saturday.
All it took was Auston Matthews leading Team USA to a gold medal at the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan, Italy, defeating Canada in the championship game.
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After flying home with his teammates, Matthews drew more ire from Canadians by visiting President Donald Trump in the White House.
One fan even started an online petition to remove Matthews as the Leafs’ captain, claiming that by visiting the White House, “he missed an opportunity to stand for the values and beliefs that are important to many Canadians.”
The crowd at Scotiabank Arena had a chance to make its thoughts known Saturday, when the Leafs played the Ottawa Senators.
There were more cheers than boos when the Leafs honored their three Olympians during the first TV timeout of the game. But the reception for Matthews was decidedly mixed.
The Scotiabank Arena public address announcer also name-checked the Leafs’ William Nylander and Oliver Ekman-Larsson, who competed for Team Sweden in Milan. Neither drew audible boos from the crowd, at least compared to Matthews.
Sweden, like Canada, was eliminated from the gold-medal chase by Team USA in a 2-1 overtime loss at the Olympics.
The Senators defeated the Maple Leafs, 5-2.
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