Montreal Canadiens Defenseman Out Several Weeks

The Montreal Canadiens are not going to have Mike Matheson for a while, as the 28-year-old defenseman will be out for the next eight weeks due to an abdominal muscle strain.

This is rough news to hear, as Matheson is viewed as one of the Canadiens' best defensemen this season. Now, they are going to have to wait until around Christmas time for the Quebec native to make his regular-season debut.

Matheson was one of the players who the Canadiens added from the Pittsburgh Penguins in the Jeff Petry deal this summer. He is coming off of a strong season that saw him set new career highs with 11 goals, 20 assists, and 31 points. Once he is healthy, he will be aiming to carry over this success to Montreal. If he does, he could end up being a pretty big part of their club moving forward.