From ‘population: 319’ to ‘population: 900,000’: Blue Jacket Denton Mateychuk’s journey to NHL first-rounder

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MOOSE JAW — If you ever want to find Denton Mateychuk, just take a stroll down to Mosaic Place, the arena home to the Western Hockey League’s Moose Jaw Warriors. The 18-year-old Columbus Blue Jackets first-round selection is always working on his craft.

That discipline and blue-collar attitude come from an accomplished family filled with professional and sporting achievements. His father Jason was inducted to the Manitoba Baseball Hall of Fame, and his Mother Keela won the Manitoba Women’s Marathon. His older brother Maddux is a highly touted baseball recruit who has received attention from Major League Baseball, and the Pittsburgh Penguins selected his cousin Owen Pickering 21st overall in the 2022 NHL Draft. It was a family reunion in Montreal during the Draft weekend. The Jackets selected Mateychuk 12th overall. He holds the bragging rights.

Mateychuk grew up in the small town of Dominion City, Manitoba. According to the Canadian Census, the population is just 319. Quite the difference compared to a city like Moose Jaw with 33,000 people, or Columbus, Ohio with 900,000. Life can be slow in a small town that is only known for farming and having the world’s largest sturgeon caught there. However, Mateychuk worked on his passion, which was hockey and something he wanted to do for the rest of his life. Growing up, he was an avid Brandon Wheat Kings supporter, because the Winnipeg Ice had not secured a WHL franchise until 2019-20 and there was only one Manitoba team to cheer for. He watched 2017 second overall pick Nolan Patrick put up 100 points and hoist the WHL Championship in 2015-16, further motivating him to get to the next level.

In 2017-18, Mateychuk played on the Draft Day Hockey Selects U14 team along with fellow 2022 draftees Rutger McGroarty (Winnipeg Jets), Lane Hutson (Montreal Canadiens), and 2023 top prospect Adam Fantilli. In nine games, Mateychuk registered two goals and three assists, putting his name on the map for the 2019 WHL Bantam Draft. The Warriors selected him 11th overall and he made his major junior debut in 2019-20, registering two points in seven games.

The Warriors named Mateychuk as their 35th captain in September 2022. He took the helm from Minnesota Wild prospect Daemon Hunt, who helped guide him. The Warriors are a prestigious organization in the WHL with alumni that include Mike Keane, Kelly Buchberger, Ryan Smyth, Theo Fleury, Morgan Rielly and Brayden Point, to name a few.

This season, Mateychuk has been one of the premier defensemen in the WHL, recording 45 points (6G, 39A) in 42 games so far, tying him for fourth among WHL defensemen. Despite his dominance this year, he was not invited to the Under-20 Team Canada World Juniors Selection Camp. The omission shocked many in the industry, including Blue Jackets development coach and former NHL player Derek Dorsett.

“I thought he deserved a chance,” Dorsett told Daily Faceoff. “He’s one of the top defensemen in the Western Hockey League. It was disappointing, but he will have a crack at it next year too.”

Dorsett also expanded on what it was like to work with Mateychuk 1-on-1 during Blue Jackets training camp last summer.

“He’s a driven kid, a quiet kid, but someone who has a competitive edge to him (which) I really like,” Dorsett said. “He moves good along the blueline, but he defends well too and has good gaps and can use his stick very well.”

Dorsett watched Mateychuk throughout the Traverse City Tournament in September, noting that he felt Mateychuk “really stuck out as one of the top guys in the tournament.”

Mateychuk plays a solid two-way game that oozes elite offensive skills. His edge work and ability to use his supreme skating ability are among his best traits. Looking for a comparable? Mateychuk told Daily Faceoff he watches a lot of Boston Bruins defenseman Charlie McAvoy.

“I see a lot of similarities in our game,” Mateychuk said. “I want to be that two-way defenseman. He can play in any situation and has that defensive zone awareness and good body positioning. He’s got that offensive side where he can run the power play, too.”

If you have ever watched Mateychuk and McAvoy play, that comparison is scarily accurate. Mateychuk commands the blueline with poise and ensures he is the quarterback driving each play. 

Mark Scheig, a credentialed Blue Jackets reporter for The Hockey Writers, watched Mateychuk throughout training camp and preseason. “The word that comes to mind for me when it comes to Mateychuk is unique,” Scheig said. “He has confidence in his game when it comes to his offensive skill. His finishing ability is as impressive as his passing ability. He is a true rover on the ice. As for his future, he is considered a big part of their top four eventually and has a chance to be one of the best picks of the 2022 NHL Draft if his offensive game translates to the NHL.”

The Blue Jackets are in good shape on the blueline heading into the next five years with the likes of Stanislav Svozil, David Jiricek and Mateychuk making their way through the pipeline. With what seems like a horde of offensive defensemen making their leaps to the NHL, Mateychuk can separate himself from the pack.

While a lot of the focus is on his offensive flair, he possesses good defensive tendencies, which is what categorizes him as a two-way defender. While there are concerns about his height heading into the NHL level, he possesses a strong skating ability that allows him to cut players off and slow down the cycle. He takes an active role in breaking up passes to stop a rush and uses stick-on-stick plays to pick the puck away from his opponent. All are traits that Mateychuk can continuously develop as he matures and understands the pace and speed of the NHL.

A Chat with Mateychuk

In an interview with Mateychuk conducted via text, we discussed his season in Moose Jaw, the Blue Jackets training camp, what it was like not to be selected for Team Canada and more. 

Daily Faceoff: Take me back to the draft. Was there any indication Columbus was going to pick you at 12th overall?

Denton Mateychuk: You always have your feelings and they were kind of a team that felt like I could go to, but when it comes down to it, it’s a draft and lots of things can happen, so, in the end, I was kind of sitting there trying to enjoy it, enjoy the moment and when my name was called. It was pretty special.

Daily Faceoff: You had a summer to prepare for camp and NHL preseason. Was there a specific skill you wanted to work on and improve on?

Denton Mateychuk: Being a two-way threat, being able to kill penalties, working on my shot, having a quick release and being able to get pucks off quickly. Things like that are what I tried to work on this off-season.

Daily Faceoff: You impressed at camp and earned yourself a couple of pre-season games against Pittsburgh and Buffalo. What was that like and how did you find out you’d be sticking around a bit longer?

Denton Mateychuk: Yeah, it was pretty awesome. I think probably my favorite one was going into Pittsburgh and playing that first preseason game. I watched Pittsburgh quite a bit growing up, Sidney Crosby, Kris Letang and Evgeni Malkin. None of those guys were in that game, but just playing in that atmosphere and being a part of it was awesome.

Daily Faceoff: You were named the 35th captain of the Moose Jaw Warriors. What did you learn from previous captain Daemon Hunt and how do you apply your own leadership tactics?

Denton Mateychuk: Being defense partners with him and seeing them throughout the year, he does a lot of things like a pro, practices like a pro, he’s a professional and I just tried to take that and use that to contribute to these other guys in the locker room.

Daily Faceoff: I caught you and the Warriors on your road trip through B.C. Your skating pops right away and your edge work is phenomenal. Do you watch any game tape? What have been the keys to making your skating so strong?

Denton Mateychuk: Watching the game is a huge part of it and that’s where you can see what the defenders are doing. Watching the game and then looking at what their positioning is and how you can escape from that and use your edges to escape, I think it’s something that I look for when I’m watching my video and try to do.

Daily Faceoff: Shockingly, you were left off Team Canada’s World Junior selection camp roster. What were your initial feelings and how does it motivate you?

Denton Mateychuk: Yeah, for sure it motivates me, it’s something that I wanted, to have the chance to represent my country and win a gold medal. It’s out of my control but something that you want to do, but also I can use it as motivation and that’s what I’m going to try and do.

Daily Faceoff: Let’s end this on something fun. If you were to select your own shootout song, what would it be?

Denton Mateychuk: I would probably go with Thunderstruck, feel like that would be a good one. Probably just get down there and put you in the zone a little bit.