<b><div align="center">Matthew Auston's Player Highlights
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<div align="center">Matthew Auston celebrates after scoring his first SMJHL goal in his first game played</div>

<div align="center">Matthew Auston is a sniping centerman from Guarda, Switzerland. He played in an elite league in Switzerland and actually won their first championship in his very last season he was eligible to play. Auston managed to crack the top 10 scoring two years in a row and won MVP in his league in S32. Just when he thought his hockey career was over, he was playing beer league back in his home town when he was approached by one of the St. Louis Scarecrow scouts and was offered a one year contract worth 2 million, Auston said yes immediately, went home and packed his bag. The next day he travelled to St. Louis and was put on the roster and added to the lineup. It was a home game, he was super nervous but to his success he scored in his very first professional hockey game, he then knew he still had it.

In his first season Matthew Auston, a late recruit in the SMJHL played 38 games. In those games he collected 7 goals, 5 assists and his average minutes per game were 9.13. He had 32 shots and a shooting percentage of 21.88 leading the team. This year with the St. Louis scarecrows he will hopefully be able to up his time on ice and hopefully his point total will reflect that. In the circle he posted a 47.73% which is pretty impressive for a first year center man. We got to talk with one his previous coach briefly and his comments on the Auston were that he is “a soft-spoken person, a quiet leader and intelligent player.”

Although he had a quiet first season with the St. Louis Scarecrow, he worked and trained hard every day in the offseason to make sure he was ready for the SHL draft. To his surprise and most others around the league, he was selected 10th overall to the Los Angeles Panthers. We got to catch up with Auston for an interview the day after the SHL draft:
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Reporter: “Obviously as you mentioned above, you were surprised to be drafted 10th overall by the Los Angeles Panthers, can you describe what went through your mind? “

Auston: “Well to be honest with you I thought I was dreaming… it still feels like a dream. When I was looking at all the draft rankings the day before, every draft had me going late in the second round so I kind of got my mind set to that and started looking at those times. So basically my initial thought was “was that my really name?!” I looked over at my family and saw my mom had tears in her eyes so I knew it had to be true.”

Reporter: “Do you think you live up to the expectations of such a high draft pick? “

Auston: “Well I’ve been an underdog all my life and in the past I have turned some heads, so I am hoping that’s what I can do in this league as well. I may not always be the most skilled person on the ice but it’s not always skill that wins game, its hard work and determination and I will out work anyone else on the ice. “

Reporter: “How many seasons do you think it will take before you get the call up to the SHL?”

Auston: “To be honest with you… I’ve heard lots of stories about players who are brought up to early in their hockey careers and its wrecks the development of a player. When my coaches and team management think I’m ready to make the jump from the St. Louis Scarescrows to the Los Angles Panthers they will let me know. I think that if I put in as much training as I have this offseason and the next season I think my time will come sooner rather than later but if you wanted numbers I would probably say about 3 seasons. “

Reporter: “Would you ever consider switching positions?”

Auston: “Well funny you mention that because shortly after getting drafted it was time to discuss what the plan was for my future with my current general manager in St. Louis. For the next season it looks like I am going to be starting on the wing playing more minutes and that’s okay with me because I find the more minutes I play, the more success I’ve had. I have played the wing back in my earlier years of hockey but not for a while, it will take some getting used too but when you have the team mates that I have it will be a walk in the park“

Reporter: “Is there anyone out there that you want to say thanks to before we close this interview?”

Auston: “I would like to thank my parents and my brother for getting me involved in hockey and always supporting me no matter where I wanted to go, and of course my girlfriend for pushing me even harder than I have before and getting me to where I am now. I’m glad they were all able to make it last night; it’s a night I will never forget. “

Reporter: “Thank you for this interview, I know you are very busy in training camp right now so I appreciate your time! We hope to be able to catch up with you sometime soon.

Auston: “Thank you for having me, pleasure talking with you “

Right below we have included Matthew Auston’s player attributes so you can get a good idea of what type of player he is.
Total TPE = 275
CK = Checking: 41 1/2
FG = Fighting: 28
DI = Discipline: 62
SK = Skating: 71
ST = Strength: 61 1/2
EN = Endurance: 69
DU = Durability: 50
PH = Puck Handling: 71
FO = Face Offs: 61 1/2
PA = Passing: 61
SC = Scoring: 72
DF = Defense: 62
PS = Penalty Shot: 43

Strengths:

Scoring: Matthew Auston’s scoring comes in at a very solid 72 overall after his training these past couple weeks. There is no doubt in my mind that he is going to be putting up a lot more goals than what he posted last year. With his increased playing time that he should receive this year I feel like he will excel much quicker than last year.

Skating: One of his biggest assets is his skating; he is lightning fast and can rip around the defensemen to break up a pass or to jump up in the play to create scoring chances. Within the last couple of years he has exploded on the ice with his long strides and his ability to out skate most players.

Puck Handling: Auston has great puck handling skills, he developed some wicked hands in the last couple of seasons that allow him to deke out the goalie and defenders and tuck it into the net. Some say that he developed these skills from stick handling in a phone booth.

Weakness:

Checking: Even though he stands at 6’5, 250 pounds the whole league knows him as the “friendly giant”. You won’t see him in the corners dishing out the puck and you will not see him throwing out multiple hits a game but that doesn’t mean he isn’t a good player because of all his other assets out shine his checking. This is something that Auston can work on in the off season to hopefully benefit his team and become a better player.