It'd be no slight to you if you saw this headline and couldn't believe a defensive defenseman on a seperate pairing was getting credit for a different defenseman's offensive breakout. However, after reading Arpon Basu's captivating article in The Athletic, it makes sense why Lane Hutson can credit Alexandre Carrier for his offensive statistics.
Hutson has two goals and eight assists over his last ten games, playing at a point-per-game pace for the first time in his career. There are many reasons for Hutson's emergence, but according to Basu, it all trickles down from the Carrier acquisition and Martin St. Louis' decision to put him alongside Kaiden Guhle.
The most pressing issue for the Canadiens' defense core was getting Guhle back to his strong side on the left. Guhle had been taking one for the team and playing the right side, but that isn't the front office's long-term goal for their young defenseman. The team is better with Guhle on his strong side, which is evident since Carrier's arrival.
The Carrier acquisition gave the Canadiens a lineup with three offensive and three defensive defensemen. (Basu lists Arber Xhekaj as an offensive defenseman, which is one of the few things I don't necessarily agree with in the article.) As Basu says in the article, the basic thing to do would be to have an offensive and defensive defenseman on each pairing. Still, St. Louis put Matheson and Hutson together instead.
Fans held their breath the first time they saw that lineup, as it had the potential to be a massive defensive liability. However, Matheson and Hutson have been testing the theory that the best defense is a good offense. If the Canadiens have the puck for most of Hutson and Matheson's shift, it's hard for the other team to score.
Carrier and Guhle take most of the defensive responsibility, leaving Hutson and Matheson to match with the bottom of the other team's lineup and feast on the mismatch. It was an underrated move by the front office and St. Louis when Carrier came in, but it could be one of their most intelligent moves of the era.
I won't reveal too much from the Basu article, as it is worth of a read-through if you're a fan of the team. The Barron-for-Carrier trade may have been overlooked, but it has completely changed the course of the 2024-25 Montreal Canadiens.