The Canadiens have their blueline locked up after Matheson extension
With a notable player being locked down for an extended period of time, the Montreal Canadiens have their D-Corps set for the future.
On Friday, the Canadiens signed defenseman Mike Matheson to a five-year contract extension. The deal has an AAV of $6 million through the 2030-31 season.
Along with keeping a solid two-way blueliner for the foreseeable future, the Canadiens have a solid base of players on the back end for a few years. Noah Dobson is locked in through the 2032-33 season, with Matheson and Kaiden Guhle both signed through 2031. Also, Lane Hutson’s contract is on the books until the end of the 2033-34 campaign, giving Montreal some defensive stability for a long time.
On Friday’s edition of Daily Faceoff LIVE, Tyler Yaremchuk and Carter Hutton discussed how the Canadiens have a core of talent on the back end for years to come.
Tyler Yaremchuk: He’s on the other side of 30 now. He’s one of the more veteran pieces on that blue line, but when you look at five years at a $6 million cap hit, this is not an offensive deal for me at all. This is far, far, far from an overpay.
Carter Hutton: It’s a great deal. And his skating ability and the way he plays, he creates a lot of offense and his game is through his legs…This is a good piece to have as a veteran guy who’s fit in here with his younger core, and it’s still a really good number. When you start to break down their cap and their cap space and the pieces that are signed long-term, this becomes a very, very good hockey team, right? You look at Kaiden Guhle, Mike Matheson, and then the big two with Dobson and obviously Hutson…there’s your top four defensemen for the foreseeable future.
These are very good pieces. I think they complement each other well….this is going to be a dangerous team for Montreal. They just need to start getting some more consistent goaltending, and then this team becomes an immediate threat for the foreseeable future.
You can watch the full segment and entire episode here…