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Mike Matheson: Tony Marinaro compares him to a “chicken with no head”.

Since arriving in Montreal, Mike Matheson has been quite a revelation with the Habs. Acquired in return for Jeff Petry in the summer of 2022, he was plagued by injuries early in the season last year, but once on the ice, he began to play like a real top-notch offensive defenseman.

No one would have given him the Norris, but 34 points in 48 games for a CH defenseman last year was worthy of mention.

This season, however, it’s a little more complicated for the defenseman. The points are still there (he has seven in 11 games), but he’s more hesitant and shaky when in possession of the puck.

The highs are high, but the lows are very low, especially in recent weeks.

We wonder if he’s carrying an injury that could bother him on the ice, but the CH team seems to be reassuring. Martin St-Louis, Jordan Harris and Johnathan Kovacevic have reiterated that they expect to see #8 bounce back soon.

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That said, Matheson’s lack of action means that he’s not necessarily offering very inspired hockey these days. After Saturday’s game, I wrote that he looked like the Jeff Petry of 2021-22, and that wasn’t much of a compliment.

Tony Marinaro, on the other hand, took things a step further. With his trademark color, he said last night that, these days, Matheson looks like… a “headless chicken”.

That’s got to be clear.

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Marinaro says we’re seeing a bit of the Matheson who was “given up” by the Panthers, and I’d add that we’re seeing a bit of the player who frustrated the Penguins, hence why they traded him to the Tricolore in the summer of 2022.

I still think they regret the transaction (especially since Jeff Petry didn’t offer the Penguins any great services), but we can see why teams have traded him in the past.

We agree that Matheson’s chances of getting back on his feet are pretty good. Eventually, the return of David Savard may take some of the weight off his shoulders, but he could bounce back long before that, too.

The fact remains that, according to MoneyPuck, only Mathew Barzal and John Carlson (17 each) have committed more turnovers than Matheson (15) this season across the NHL. That’s not very impressive, especially as the two guys ahead of him have 10 and 11 takeaways respectively. Matheson, on the other hand, has just three.

Again, I think Matheson will eventually bounce back (he’s far too talented not to get back to where he was last year), but it’s true that it’s not glorious these days.

I don’t know if I’d go so far as to say he looks like a “headless chicken”, but I understand the statement.

In bursts

– Good news for the Rocket.

– I love it.

– Will Levis will be the Titans’ starting quarterback until the end of the season. Ryan Tannehill, meanwhile, will take a seat on the bench.