Ordinarily, Mike Babcock isn't one to appreciate anything short of a win.

But after Auston Matthews' four-goal debut, and impressive performances from other fresh faces in an opening-night loss to the Ottawa Senators that, frankly, is on their goaltender, even he couldn't hide the fact that it was a great night to be the coach of the Toronto Maple Leafs.

"That's the best night I've had here by 10 miles," he said after the game, according to TSN's Kristen Shilton. "Not even close. Because now we have the opportunity."

In his second season in Toronto, the Leafs have a fighting chance for the simple fact that they can score.

With Matthews, his winger William Nylander, and ever-dangerous Mitch Marner, the Leafs have finishers to capitalize on the reasonably successful system they implemented with below-to-league average talent last year. Because with unskilled forwards firing at a league-low clip, having more than an even share of total shot attempts still meant that the Leafs would finish with the third-fewest goals in 2015-16.

With these weapons, it's on Babcock to have the new-look Leafs assimilate back into that simple system, and have those goals translate to wins.

What the coach can't control, however, is the performance of Frederik Andersen, who allowed five goals on 30 shots in the first game into his five-year $25-million contract with the Maple Leafs.

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The record books will show Patrick Maroon scored the first goal in the Edmonton Oilers' new home.

The Oilers forward lit the lamp less than two minutes into Wednesday's home opener, deflecting the puck past Calgary Flames goalie Brian Elliott at the 1:10 mark.

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The Edmonton Oilers celebrated the opening of their new home by saluting their past.

Wayne Gretzky and Mark Messier took a lap to officially open Rogers Place.

Wednesday was particularly special for Gretzky, who rejoined the Oilers as partner and vice-chairman of Oilers Entertainment Group.

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Not how the Chicago Blackhawks drew it up.

An errant drop pass by Brent Seabrook late in Wednesday's season opener against St. Louis ended up in Chicago's empty net, giving the Blues a 5-2 win.

St. Louis' best players led the way, with Vladimir Tarasenko, Paul Stastny, and Kevin Shattenkirk each recording three points. Alex Steen had two assists.

The Blues outshot Chicago 33-19, including 15-3 in the third period.

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Here come the Oilers!

Speaking prior to Wednesday's season opener at the team's new arena, Edmonton Oilers executive Kevin Lowe said, "We might lose some games but we're not going to lose quite as easy as we had in the past."

Lowe currently serves as the vice chair and alternate governor of Oilers Entertainment Group. He was previously the team's president of hockey operations, and suited up with the team from 1979 to 1992. Lowe, 57, returned for two more seasons in 1996. He's also served as coach and general manager.

The Oilers have not qualified for the playoffs since 2006, despite drafting first overall four times since 2010.

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If you've taken a peek at Twitter, or caught a moment of the game, you know by now that Toronto Maple Leafs rookie Auston Matthews had a debut for the ages. Perhaps the greatest ever.

Four goals on six shots in 17 minutes and 37 seconds.

It's an astounding line, one that sent shock waves through the NHL community, and that completely outshines the highly anticipated debuts of the salary cap era.

For proper contrast, here's how those No. 1 picks fared:

Connor McDavid, Oilers

McDavid was scoreless, recording two shots on 22 shifts and logging 18-plus minutes in a loss to the St. Louis Blues. Oilers head coach Todd McLellan said of McDavid after the game: "He was fine."

Aaron Ekblad, Panthers

Ekblad earned his first NHL point in his debut, the defender adding two shots, two blocked shots, one hit, and a takeaway, while finishing with a plus-1 rating. The Panthers lost in overtime to the Tampa Bay Lightning.

Nathan MacKinnon, Avalanche

MacKinnon helped the Avalanche to a 6-1 win in his first game, collecting two assists. He also tried to fight Ben Lovejoy, throwing down his mitts before being intercepted by the officials.

Nail Yakupov, Oilers

Yakupov actually had a decent start to his career in Edmonton, but had to get the debut out of the way before making his mark. He was minus-2 in 16-plus minutes in a win over the Vancouver Canucks.

Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, Oilers

Nugent-Hopkins scored Edmonton's only goal in a 2-1 shootout win over the Pittsburgh Penguins, flipping in a backhander after loosening up the puck on a drive to the front of the net.

Taylor Hall, Oilers

Hall didn't make it on the scoresheet, but helped lead the Oilers' attack in a 4-0 win over the Calgary Flames, recording four shots.

John Tavares, Islanders

Tavares recorded a pair of power-play points in his debut, scoring once with a backhander over Marc-Andre Fleury and setting up another in an eventual loss to the Penguins.

Steven Stamkos, Lightning

Stamkos was on a short leash in his NHL debut. He had two shots in a handful of shifts.

Patrick Kane, Blackhawks

The Blackhawks' only No. 1 pick in club history had two shots in nearly 17 minutes in a 1-0 loss to the Minnesota Wild.

Erik Johnson, Blues

The defenseman picked up an assist on a Keith Tkachuk goal in a 3-2 loss to the Phoenix Coyotes in Arizona. He added two hits in 18 minutes.

Sidney Crosby, Penguins

Crosby netted one point in his debut, spotting Mark Recchi in front, who jammed a puck in past Martin Brodeur. The Penguins lost 5-1 to the New Jersey Devils.

Alex Ovechkin, Capitals

After his arrival in North America was delayed by the NHL lockout, Ovechkin scored his first two goals on his way to 52 in a 3-2 win over the Columbus Blue Jackets. His first was an Ovechkin-like one-touch drive from above the hash marks.

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Auston Matthews could have done more.

The 19-year-old dazzled Wednesday, becoming the first player in history to score four goals in his NHL debut, but after the game he spoke about Kyle Turris' overtime winner, which gave the Ottawa Senators a 5-4 win over the Toronto Maple Leafs.

Matthews was cheating offensively in three-on-three overtime, and it cost him, as he couldn't get back in time to keep Turris from an open look from the slot. The Senator beat Frederik Andersen high, glove side.

"It was definitely my fault," Matthews said after the game, according to Sportsnet's Eric Engels.

The teenager called his four-goal night "pretty surreal," according to ESPN's Pierre LeBrun. He added that it was "mites or something" when he last potted four in a game, and that the night left him speechless, according to TSN's Kristen Shilton.

It's fair to say he left Maple Leafs supporters speechless, too.

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A four-goal effort from Auston Matthews wasn't enough, as Ottawa Senators center Kyle Turris capped off Wednesday's 5-4 overtime win over the Toronto Maple Leafs, notching his second goal of the night.

After grabbing a feed from Mark Stone, Turris skated up to the hash marks and wired the puck by Maple Leafs goalie Frederik Andersen, who allowed five goals on 30 shots in the loss.

The night ended on a sour note for Matthews, who was on the ice and behind the play for Turris' goal.

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A fan at Wednesday night's OHL match between the Mississauga Steelheads and the Guelph Storm took his enthusiasm a little too far.

The unidentified fan climbed the glass and began to glide across the ice, only before wiping out and being met by the on-ice officials.

The Steelheads won the blowout match 11-3, with defenseman Nicolas Hague leading the way with three goals.

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Players don't typically wade into the online commentary mid-game, but after Auston Matthews sprung for four goals (and counting) in his debut Wednesday night, they couldn't help but reach for their phones.

Here are the best tweets from Matthews' peers, who have picked their jaws up off the ground, led off by another gem from Roberto Luongo:

Some gold from other NHL superstars:

And some other notable names:

The face punchers sunk the lay up.

And Mark Scheifele shared this, hoping for the same from his new teammate:

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