Getting to know new defenseman
Matheson feels good about new team
During his five years of skating for the Florida Panthers, Mike Matheson apparently spent a good amount of time checking out the competition on television.
It was not that he had wandering eyes. Three years ago, he signed a long- term contract he hoped would keep him in Florida until at least 2026. A young Panthers squad showed promise, and he wanted to keep growing with it.
But whenever he caught the Penguins on TV, he felt a sense of intrigue.
“The amount of games I’ve seen Pittsburgh play, I’ve always kind of had it in my head that they play a game that I would love to be a part of,” he said Friday.
The 26- year- old defenseman soon will be able to find that out firsthand.
After “a weird 48 hours” for Matheson, who was stuck in limbo after trade talks became public Wednesday then hit a snag that put the deal in jeopardy, he is now a member of the Penguins. They shipped playoff hero Patric Hornqvist to Florida on Thursday for Matheson and bottomsix forward Colton Sceviour.
Matheson thinks he can reboot his career in “a hockey town like Pittsburgh.”
“Their whole lineup seems like they get the best out of their players,” he said. “I think for me, it’s definitely a great opportunity for a fresh start. It’s a welcome fresh start for me, and I’m super excited to make the most of it.”
To put it mildly, Matheson’s final season in Florida did not go as planned.
The left- shot defenseman was unable to win over first- year Panthers coach Joel Quenneville, who flip- flopped Matheson between the left and right sides. Matheson also spent a few games at forward. That was not ideal, but it certainly beat his status in their final two playoff games — out of uniform.
In the two games he did play, he was a minus- 2 with eight penalty minutes.
“Things just weren’t really working, it seemed like. I feel like I wasn’t always being put in the best opportunity to succeed,” he said. “I obviously blame myself for that, too. There were times where my game wasn’t where it should be.”
Sceviour says his teammate wasn’t one to sulk amid that adversity.
“Mike’s the kind of guy where when something like that happens, he just tries to work harder and figure something out. … He’s going to give you everything he has,” Sceviour said. “And in practice the next day he’s going to work on whatever it is that maybe he wasn’t doing well that got him in that position.”
He pointed to a February win against the New Jersey Devils, when Quenneville asked Matheson to play wing and he contributed a goal and two assists.
“Mike’s a heck of a player,” Sceviour, 31, said. “He can skate about as well as anyone in the league. He’s got a cannon for a shot. I think he’s a very good NHL defenseman. Maybe the last year wasn’t what we’ve seen from him, but a couple of years ago I saw him playing at his best. And he’s very, very capable.”
Those skills are what made general manager Jim Rutherford willing to move on from Hornqvist and take on Matheson’s annual cap hit of $ 4,875,000. Sceviour could make an impact in a checkingline role and on the penalty kill. But whether this trade was worth it will hinge on whether Matheson bounces back.
“He’s got a pretty good package there,” Rutherford said of the 6- foot- 2 blue- liner. “He can really skate. He plays the way we like to play. He’s got a good shot.”
With 347 giveaways in 299 games, Matheson can be careless with the puck. And he isn’t known as a strong defender. But if he is slotted into the third pair with the Penguins, the hope is his strengths will be accentuated.
“They’re such a great transition team,” Matheson said. “I know from playing them that you think you’re on offense and all of the sudden they’ve [ taken] the puck and are sending it right down your throat on a 2- on- 1 or a 3- on- 2.”
He added: “That quick transition is so difficult to play against and I think that’s what I’m good at. And I’m able to help with my skating and puck- moving and getting the puck up to the forwards and being able to join the rush.”
Matheson, a Quebec native who has trained with Kris Letang in past offseasons, had a career- high 10 goals in 2017- 18 and has twice totaled 27 points.
Excited for this “new chapter,” Matheson said he wishes the season was “starting tomorrow.” In the meantime, he’ll have to watch more hockey on TV. The Stanley Cup will be handed out in the coming days.