The Montreal Canadiens boast a wealth of young talent on their roster. From captain Nick Suzuki to Patrik Laine to Juraj Slavkovsky to the budding Ivan Demidov, they have an impressive mix of forwards.
Their blueline has a lot of skill too, with the likes of Lane Hutson and Noah Dobson in the fold. However, Pittsburgh Penguins defender Kris Letang believes that neither of those two is the team’s best blueliner. In fact, he gives that designation to Mike Matheson.
Matheson, 31, is a 6-foot-2, 196 lb left-handed defender who was initially drafted 23rd overall in 2012 by the Florida Panthers.
Kris Letang on Mike Matheson
While making an appearance on the La Poche Bleue podcast, Letang very briefly spoke about the “indispensable” Matheson.
“As of right now, Mike Matheson is the Canadiens’ number one defenseman,” Letang said on the September 16th episode of the podcast. “He is indispensable.”
At first blush, it might not seem like that significant of a compliment. However, it’s essential to note that Letang and Matheson were teammates when the latter played alongside the former for a couple of seasons with the Penguins.
Matheson played 288 minutes with Letang during Matheson’s second season with the team. According to Frozen Tools, the pairing did well together, boasting a positive goal differential alongside a 52.6 Corsi For Percentage.
Letang isn’t the only person to think about how valuable Matheson is to the Canadiens franchise. Head coach Martin St. Louis spoke in January about what Matheson means to the team.
“We’re lucky to have him,” St. Louis said via Sportsnet. “He does so many good things on the ice that it’s easy for some people to overlook, but we know his value. He plays big minutes, covers a lot of ice, and always gives it his all.
Matheson Wants to Stay in Montreal
GettyMike Matheson
Another recent report, this time from The Fourth Period, adds that the Canadiens have interest in keeping Matheson around. The same report references a podcast appearance by Matheson, in which he expressed his desire to stay in Montreal.
“I’d like to stay here as long as possible,” Matheson told the hosts of the La Roche Bleue podcast. “I’m letting my agent handle things.”
The Fourth Period wrote, “contract talks between the Canadiens and his agent are believed to be ongoing.”
Matheson is Vital to Canadiens’ Success
Matheson has been a key player in the Canadiens’ defense. When comparing his stats against other Canadiens’ blueliners, a few things stand out.
The 31-year-old led the Canadiens defenders in ice time (25:05), shots (149), and was second in points (31) and powerplay points (20).
Ice time is the ultimate currency of compliments. If a coach values a player and trusts them, the ice time will tell the story. For Matheson, he averaged the second most powerplay time on ice (1:57), the most shorthanded time on ice (3:28), and the most overtime time on ice (1:25).
This value is a double-edged sword, however. Matheson provides excellent value to the Canadiens and, in the same breath, provides a valuable asset that could be traded for an upgrade elsewhere.
Because of this value, Letang is correct in saying that Matheson is “indispensable.”
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