Apr 19, 2018; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Toronto Maple Leafs forward Auston Matthews (34) walks past a club sign after warmups before playing Boston Bruins in game four of the first round of the 2018 Stanley Cup Playoffs at Air Canada Centre. Mandatory Credit: Dan Hamilton-USA TODAY Sports

Who has the best-selling jersey in the NHL? You already know the answer to that question if you read the title of this article, but if you managed to come in blindly, you may be surprised to learn it’s not Sidney Crosby. Crosby, who had the top-selling sweater last season, finished second in 2017-18 behind … Auston Matthews.

The 20-year-old star of the Toronto Maple Leafs had the top-selling jersey when the numbers from the Fanatics ecommerce sites (including Shop NHL, NHLShop.ca and Fanatics.com) were compiled.

Matthews won the Calder Trophy in his rookie year and has seen his fandom only grow larger in his second season. That’s a fact that hasn’t gone unnoticed by Matthews, as seen over on NHL.com.

“We’ve got unbelievable fans here and every time we play it’s awesome seeing your jersey in the stands. It’s definitely something I don’t take for granted.”

Matthews’ profile is already enormous in Toronto, but it’s still taking hold around the league as a whole. He’s the special kind of player that fans who cheer for rival teams can stop and appreciate. As seen with Crosby, Matthews is gaining fans well outside of the Toronto area, leading to his top-selling sweater status.

Below is how the rest of the top-15 in jersey sales panned out:

1. Auston Matthews, Toronto Maple Leafs
2. Sidney Crosby, Pittsburgh Penguins
3. Connor McDavid, Edmonton Oilers
4. Marc-Andre Fleury, Vegas Golden Knights
5. Henrik Lundqvist, New York Rangers
6. Alex Ovechkin, Washington Capitals
7. Mats Zuccarello, New York Rangers
8. Patrick Kane, Chicago Blackhawks
9. Jonathan Toews, Chicago Blackhawks
10. Vladimir Tarasenko, St. Louis Blues
11. Patrice Bergeron, Boston Bruins
12. T.J. Oshie, Washington Capitals
13. Jack Eichel, Buffalo Sabres
14. Andrei Vasilevskiy, Tampa Bay Lightning
15. Evgeni Malkin, Pittsburgh Penguins

Though the list above is full of familiar names, there may be a couple surprises. Marc-Andre Fleury’s season, as well as the year as a whole for the Vegas Golden Knights, has been a total shock. T.J. Oshie’s name appearing in the top-15 is also fairly unexpected.

It’s refreshing seeing some of the league’s youngest and brightest stars receiving the attention they deserve. A new guard is taking over in the NHL. The days of Matthews and Connor McDavid taking the top-two spots may not be far off.

Will Matthews be able to defend his jersey title in 2018-19? Or will a new name rise to the top?

About David Rogers

Editor for The Comeback and Contributing Editor for Awful Announcing. Lover of hockey, soccer and all things pop culture.