Montreal Canadiens: Mike Matheson almost ready for his season debut

The Montreal Canadiens will get a new face in their defense core, or at least they will soon. Defenseman Mike Matheson continues to near a return as he has shed his orange non-contact jersey for a regular practice jersey.

Matheson missed the beginning of the 2022-23 season, with his abdominal strain continuing to keep him off the ice. While he did get into training camp with the Habs, he has yet to make his regular-season debut with his new squad.

After being acquired via a trade with the Pittsburgh Penguins, it was anticipated he would bring an excellent addition to a thin defense core. This trade sent veteran defenseman Jeff Petry and former NCHC standout forward Ryan Poehling for Matheson and a fourth-round pick this summer.

Montreal Canadiens defenseman Mike Matheson is nearing 100%.

The 28-year-old defenseman has been in the league for seven seasons, with the last two being in Pittsburgh. Last season, in 2021-22, Matheson logged 74 games where he accrued 11 goals and 20 assists for 31 total points while being a plus-12 on the season.

That was a career-best for the left-handed shooting defender. Matheson came up with the Florida Panthers and spent five years down in Sunrise, Florida, before being traded to the Penguins for Patric Hornqvist. In Florida, his career-best was just 27 total points.

Now, the Habs are hoping he can get back on the ice and boost the team’s top four. It could mean someone like Arber Xhekaj gets sent down, but having Matheson back in the Habs’ defense core will only help them in the long run.

There’s plenty to be excited about, especially with the Habs defense core performing as well as it has. They’ve seen great performances out of several players. Kaiden Guhle emerges as a solid rookie, and Jordan Harris continues to perform quietly but gets the job done.

For Matheson, the chance to join this defense core seems like it’s nearing each day. He finally ditched the non-contact jersey. He was not cleared to play yet but is still traveling with the team to Columbus for tonight’s contest.

He skated with the team’s fourth defense pairing at practice on Friday but could easily slide into the starting lineup, even if it means someone who’s been starting gets a night off. This return and regular season debut by Matheson means the Habs defense core is at “full strength” now.