Valley native and Toronto Maple Leafs star Auston Matthews led the NHL in a coveted category this season -- and he's not even legally old enough to celebrate with an adult beverage in the United States.
The 20-year-old Matthews had the top-selling jersey among all NHL players during the 2017-18 season, according to NHL.com. Matthews beat out last year's top-seller, Pittsburgh Penguins star Sidney Crosby, to take the top spot.
The emerging star had the No. 4 selling jersey in 2016-17 when he won the Calder Trophy, given to the NHL's best rookie.
Rounding out the top five jersey sellers in 2017-18 is Connor McDavid of the Edmonton Oilers, Marc-Andre Fleury of the Vegas Golden Knights and Henrik Lundqvist of the New York Rangers.
Matthews, whose family moved to Scottsdale when he was two months old, grew up a fan of Shane Doan and the Arizona Coyotes. He has lived up to the hype since the Leafs selected him No. 1 overall pick in the 2016 NHL Draft, as he has recorded 74 goals and 58 assists in his first two NHL seasons (144 games).
As a teenager, Matthews played for the Arizona Bobcats minor hockey team. He became the first player from the southwest United States to be taken No. 1 overall in the NHL Draft, and he became the first American to go No. 1 overall since Patrick Kane did so nine years earlier.
Matthews won't turn 21 until Sept. 17.
