Mike Matheson has been a staple on the Montreal Canadiens' blue line since being traded from the Pittsburgh Penguins in the summer of 2022. The 31-year-old posted a career-high of 62 points over a full 82-game slate in 2023-24, and he's been on the top pairing for his entire tenure.
But with Matheson's contract set to expire at the conclusion of the 2025-26 campaign — and a plethora of young defenders looking to take the next step on Montreal's blue line — there have been rumblings that general manager Kent Hughes could look to trade the veteran.
Still, the seasoned rearguard has no desire to leave Quebec, as his agent Philippe Lecavalier told La Presse's Richard Labbe earlier this week.
“We have no control over that,” Lecavalier said. “Mike has control over what he can control, whether he would like to be able to stay in Montreal, and the answer is yes. He also controls his performances, how he is able to play with his team. He is a guy who takes extremely good care of himself. He monitors his diet very closely, his workouts, everything he has to do.”
Matheson was running the powerplay for two seasons with the Habs, but young phenom Lane Hutson took over that spot in 2024-25 en route to winning the Calder Trophy as the league's top rookie.
Noah Dobson was also acquired from the New York Islanders in a summer blockbuster that helped give Montreal its one-two punch of the future.
Matheson is now not quite as valuable as he once was, and it's hard to see him earning another contract that pays him $4.8 million per year. He managed just six goals and 31 points over 80 games in 2024-25 in what was a down season for the Pointe-Claire, Quebec native.
Canadiens' D-core is much improved — and Mike Matheson is still a part of that
Despite a disappointing offensive season, Matheson is no longer going to be counted on to shoulder the load offensively. He's still a responsible defensive defenseman, and a great penalty killer. That might be even more valuable to a Canadiens team that has a terrific one-two punch of Hutson and Dobson to rack up points.
Despite his offensive futility in 2024-25, Matheson still averaged 25:05 of time on ice per game, the highest of any Montreal player.
Along with the trio, Kaiden Guhle and Alexandre Carrier are also pencilled into spots, while Jayden Struble and Arber Xhekaj are expected to battle for the last two available ones at training camp.
David Reinbacher, the team's first-round pick in 2023, will also eventually be battling for his place on the crowded blue line.
As it stands, having Hutson, Dobson and Matheson each anchoring a pairing is a wealth of riches that this Montreal roster hasn't seen in a long time. If Hughes can get Matheson re-signed to a reasonable deal, it would probably make sense for all parties to keep the former first-round pick in the fold.
With Carey Price's contract traded to the San Jose Sharks, the Canadiens now project with around $4.5 million in cap space. It'll be interesting to see if that money is used to re-up Matheson this season.
