Canadiens’ Mike Matheson exits game vs. Kings with upper-body injury
The Montreal Canadiens have announced that defenseman Mike Matheson will not return to tonight’s game against the Los Angeles Kings due to an upper-body injury.
Matheson logged 7:35 minutes of ice time with one shot and one blocked shot.
Daily Faceoff’s Frank Seravalli was on Prime Monday Night Hockey and reported that Matheson’s injury is minor and he will be ready for Saturday’s game against the New York Islanders.
Le défenseur Mike Matheson ne reviendra pas dans le match de ce soir (haut du corps).
Defenseman Mike Matheson will not return to play in tonight's game (upper body).
The 30-year-old has notched three assists in four games to start this season while playing on the top defensive pairing with Justin Barron. Matheson has been on the top powerplay unit as well.
Last season, Matheson racked up a career-high 11 goals and 51 assists for 62 points in 82 games.
Matheson was part of the trade that sent Jeff Petry to the Pittsburgh Penguins in 2022. Matheson was originally selected No. 23 overall by the Florida Panthers in the 2012 NHL Draft, he spent the first five years of his NHL career with the team before landing in Pittsburgh for a two-year stint starting in 2020-21. Matheson has a $4.875 million cap hit and a modified no-trade clause is under contract until 2025-26.
Throughout his career, Matheson has 68 goals and 169 assists for 237 points in 551 NHL regular season games and another seven points in 20 postseason outings. Internationally, the Pointe-Claire, Quebec native has 13 points in 20 games with Canada’s World Championship team over two years, winning gold in 2016 and silver in 2017.
An official update will follow after the game or in the coming days from either Canadiens head coach Martin St. Louis or general manager Kent Hughes.
Montreal is set to face off against the Islanders on Saturday and the New York Rangers on Tuesday.