Insider: Canadiens Have Firm Stance On Mike Matheson's Future in Montreal
His name has been on the trade block on and off for much of the last year. Key Montreal Canadiens defenseman Mike Matheson is now in the 8th and final year of his $39 million contract ($4.88M AAV), and much of Habs Nation is wondering what his future in Montreal will be.
Turns out, despite all of the talk that a trade was inevitable, the Canadiens are all-in on extending the 31-year-old top-four blueliner. He's currently playing on the top pairing alongside newcomer Noah Dobson.
Insider Pierre LeBrun told TSN's Insider Trading on Tuesday that now that Lane Hutson's massive extension is done, Matheson is their next priority.
Between the trade for Noah Dobson in the offseason and of course that long negotiation with Lane Hutson, the Matheson file got pushed to the side. But that's going to be a big priority now for Montreal management.
They want to extend Mike Matheson, and I'm told that Matheson and his agent are interested in having that conversation. So that'll get going at some point here in the near future.
The big question, as LeBrun notes, is just what kind of term are we talking about for a d-man who'll be turning 32 when the extension kicks in.
"What's the sweet spot here?... He does not want to sign a short-term deal, I don't think. It has to be 4 to 5 years for it to make sense for him."
In addition, after handing out eight-year deals to Dobson at a $9.5M cap hit and Hutson at an $8.85 cap hit, just how much will they be able to slot in Matheson for? There's a lot of money committed to that Montreal blueline.
A good skater and puck-handler, Matheson has been a strong offensive d-man for the Habs, and has logged a massive amount of ice-time. He averaged 25 minutes a night over each of the past three seasons, while blocking well in excess of two shots per game as well.
He had a career-high 62 points in 2023-24 (11 goals, 51 assists), and posted 31 points (more along his career norm) last season.
Photo: © David Kirouac-Imagn Images
