The Montreal Canadiens locked up defenseman Mike Matheson to a five-year, $30-million contract extension on Friday.

The 31-year-old's new $6-million cap hit kicks in next season and runs through 2030-31.

Matheson, 31, is in the final year of his eight-year contract he signed with the Florida Panthers in October 2017. Across those eight years, he carried a $4.875 million cap hit.

Matheson becomes the fourth Canadiens defenseman to be signed to a contract through at least the 2030-31 campaign. Kaiden Guhle signed a six-year contract extension in July 2024, while Noah Dobson and Lane Hutson signed eight-year deals this year.

In 22 games played this season for the Habs, Matheson has four goals and 10 assists for 14 points. He’s second on the team behind Dobson in scoring among blueliners. 

The Pointe-Claire, Que., native also has a plus-13 rating, which is a team high. It's tied for 13th-best in the NHL, sharing that spot with Colorado Avalanche D-man Josh Manson and Tampa Bay Lightning center Anthony Cirelli.

Matheson also leads the team with 24:50 of average ice time, which is less than he’s averaged in the last two campaigns. He ranks 10th in the NHL in that category.

Speaking of Matheson’s last two seasons, that’s when he struck a career high. In 2023-24, he matched a personal best of 11 goals and beat other bests with 51 assists and 62 points. He finished third on the team in points that season, sitting behind captain Nick Suzuki and right winger Cole Caufield.

Matheson has played parts of 11 seasons in his NHL career since the Panthers drafted him 23rd overall in 2012. His new contract sets him up to play through another five. He’ll be 37 once his new deal expires.

He's played 649 career games in the NHL, registering 78 goals and 279 points.

Correction: Matheson's cap hit is $6 million, not $5 million.

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Heading into the American Thanksgiving weekend, the Edmonton Oilers were two points out of the final Western Conference wild-card spot.

That's prompting media conjecture that they could pursue a goaltending upgrade in the trade market.

Sportsnet's Nick Kypreos claimed “the strongest speculation” tied the Oilers to Jordan Binnington of the St. Louis Blues. Meanwhile, ESPN's Kevin Weekes stated that Tristan Jarry of the Pittsburgh Penguins was among the goalies “drawing significant interest as a potential option” for the Oilers.

Concerns over the performance of goaltenders Stuart Skinner and Calvin Pickard have kept the Oilers in the rumor mill since the regular season began.

One suggestion was that they should attempt to sign Sergei Bobrovsky when the Florida Panthers starter becomes a UFA next July. Apart from the fact that the Panthers will likely re-sign Bobrovsky, waiting until next summer won't help the Oilers now.

Another proposed that the Oilers pursue Juuse Saros of the Nashville Predators. That was assuming Saros would agree to waive his no-movement clause, while ignoring the fact that the Oilers can't afford his $7.74 million average annual value.

Kypreos considers Binnington unlikely to be part of any retooling project by the Blues because he has a year left on his contract. As for Jarry, he has three more seasons remaining on his deal. He shares the Penguins' net with Arturs Silovs, while promising Sergei Murashov and Joel Blomqvist are with their AHL affiliate in Wilkes-Barre/Scranton.

As part of the return for Binnington, Kypreos suggested the Oilers send Skinner to St. Louis. He felt they could also try to pry away a defenseman from the Blues. Meanwhile, Weekes pointed out that Jarry played his junior hockey with the WHL's Edmonton Oil Kings.

David Staples of the Edmonton Journalobserved that Binnington carries an average annual value of $6 million while Skinner's is $2.6 million. He felt it would take a significant sweetener to convince the Blues to retain part of Binnington's salary to make the dollars work for the cap-strapped Oilers.

Staples cited Oilers insider Bob Stauffer claiming that he felt the Jarry rumor made more sense. However, Stauffer also noted the difficulty the Oilers would face taking on Jarry's $5.375-million cap hit. The Penguins wouldn't have much need for taking on Skinner in return because of their goaltending depth.

Acquiring Binnington or Jarry is a long shot for the Oilers, assuming they're not on their respective no-trade lists. They'll have to convince the Blues or Penguins to retain salary, and that could cost them what few promising youngsters they have in their system, along with their 2027 first-round pick, since they no longer have one in next year's draft.

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Here's today's NHL Nugget – this Birthday Backcheck features Calgary Flames right winger Blake Coleman, who turns 34 on Nov. 28.

Coleman scored his 300th career point in his 649th game against the Vancouver Canucks on Nov. 23. He's been a valuable secondary scorer who isn't afraid to throw hits when needed.

The player the New Jersey Devils selected 75th overall in 2011 became a two-time Stanley Cup champion with the Tampa Bay Lightning. But some of the Plano, Texas, native's biggest goals came against his home-state squad, the Dallas Stars. Watch the full video for more in Coleman's Birthday Backcheck.

Brian T. Dessart takes fans on a distinctive ride through the historic-laden NHL with the #NHLNugget. Check out NHLNugget.com to find where to follow NHL Nugget on social media.  And for past NHL Nuggets, click here.      

After going 0-for-4 on the man advantage in a 3-1 loss to the Boston Bruins, the New York Islanders' power play sits at 12.7 percent, which ranks 31st in the NHL.

For the most part, this season, the power play has actually looked dangerous, but the goals aren't coming. Against Boston, that was probably the weakest the man advantage has looked, but some great setups just went by the wayside. 

The Islanders have the third-most scoring chances on the power play this season (148), but the second-fewest goals (10), with an Expected Goals for of 21.58. 

"I just feel like our power play has been playing really well," Islanders head coach Patrick Roy said following Wednesday's loss. "And sometimes it's like our PK. Our PK right now is playing with a lot of confidence. Maybe, sometimes, it's just a matter of having a little bit more confidence around the net, and our power play will click. You get one, you get two—all of a sudden, I mean, you feel confident. And I feel like that's always missing, because we are doing everything right."

Roy touched on but let's elaborate a bit on the traffic part. 

When the Islanders have had success on the power play, more often than not it's when Schaefer, at the point, keeps things simple. When he sees traffic in front, he has the innate ability to get his wrist shot through. 

When the Islanders don't have success, it's when Schaefer, Mathew Barzal, and Jonathan Drouin are playing too much perimeter hockey. While you do have to credit some of the opposition's penalty killers who have clogged up the lanes, especially Bo Horvat in the bumper spot, too often the Islanders are trying to find the perfect pass.

"We seem dangerous," Barzal said. "When we're moving it around well, and looking at the net and attacking the net, we got a lot of threats out there. So, as long as we're just moving around and creating threats, I feel like we're always dangerous. We got good players in the unit."

Does Barzal think that they need to simplify things at all?

"I don't think so...we're definitely looking for like Bo Horvat shooting from the slot. I mean, if we can get one look at that versus four average looks, I'll take that all day," Barzal said. "We feel dangerous. I mean, everyone in the building knows it's dangerous, so we just gotta find a way."

With how tight the Metropolitan Division and the Eastern Conference are, the Islanders are fortunate, with their lack of power-play success, to find themselves in the wild-card spot at Thanksgiving. Seventy-seven percent of teams in a playoff spot by then make the playoffs. 

However, the difference between first in the Metro and last in the division is 5 points. And over these first three games of the seven-game homestand, the Islanders' power play struggles are why they are 1-2-0.  The team has scored just two total goals over those three games, with the power play going 0-for-10. 

Roy did mention that he would talk with power-play coach Ray Bennett on Thursday to see what he thinks about maybe changing up some of the personnel. 

One thing the Islanders may consider is taking Drouin off the first unit. While he is a fantastic playmaker, he isn't really a threat to shoot from the right flank. That allows the opposing PK to focus on Horvat in the bumper. 

The same can be said about Barzal at the left flank, who is more often than not looking for Horvat once he gets the puck. 

Until the Islanders have two players on the flanks who are true one-time threats, it will be hard not to score consistently on the man advantage. Even if those players don't rifle ones, if the opponent thinks the one-timer is coming, that will likely open up space for Barzal or Drouin to tap one to Horvat -- just a thought. 

We saw this power-play story last season, finishing the campaign at 12.6 percent, 31st in the NHL. Had the power play been 10 percent better, the Islanders likely would have made the 2025 Stanley Cup Playoffs. 

Despite being in a playoff spot right now, the inability to come through on the man advantage could hinder this team's ability to stay in the hunt as the season progresses. 

However, if the power play starts to find success, the Islanders will have a strong chance not just of making the playoffs, but of becoming one of the more dangerous teams in the Eastern Conference.

The Vancouver Canucks (10–12–2) are making their second stop in a four-game road trip with a match against the San Jose Sharks (11–10–3) this afternoon. This marks the Canucks’ second game in California this week, as they most recently took down the Anaheim Ducks in a 5–4 win. San Jose is coming off a colossal 6–0 loss to the Colorado Avalanche — a team Vancouver will face once they’ve played all three California teams during this road trip. 

Vancouver’s win on Wednesday came about in somewhat of a surprising manner. The team mimicked Anaheim’s high-flying, low-defence style of hockey and generated 37 total scoring chances-for throughout all 60 minutes of play — something that hasn’t happened often this season. Since October 9, they’ve only hit above 40 scoring chances-for three times; against the Avalanche (40), Dallas Stars (41), and Chicago Blackhawks (44). While they shouldn’t completely abandon the defensive aspect of the game, Vancouver will want to repeat the success they had in generating chances when playing the Sharks. 

One thing to take note of when it comes to San Jose’s brand of play is that they’re currently tied for last in the NHL in shots per game with 24.3. In terms of shots and scoring chances, they have only eclipsed 40 once — during their 4–3 loss to the Los Angeles Kings on October 28. If the Sharks have a hard time producing chances and generating shots, the Canucks could use that to their advantage by putting up more of their own. 

Both the Canucks and the Sharks will play games the day after this matchup, with Vancouver facing the Kings at 7:00 pm PT on Saturday and San Jose taking on the Vegas Golden Knights in Nevada at the same time. Each team will want to be strategic with who they start in net, especially Vancouver considering the fact that their goaltending situation is currently up in the air. 

Players To Watch: 

Arshdeep Bains 

While he didn’t end up on the scoresheet in the Canucks’ Wednesday night game against the Ducks, Bains played a big role in helping his line generate offence. Wednesday was his first time slotting back into the lineup after being held out for five games and he ultimately made a difference, providing great forecheck during the opening goal. While the team’s skate on Thursday indicated that Bains may not be playing alongside Abbotsford teammate Max Sasson, the forward could be skating with Lukas Reichel, who will provide Bains and Karlsson with a similar level of speed. 

Macklin Celebrini

Many Canucks fans have paid close attention to Celebrini’s talents knowing he is from North Vancouver and currently has a brother in the Canucks organization. Vancouver connection aside, however, Celebrini has surpassed all expectations so far this season and leads his team in scoring with 14 goals and 20 assists in 24 games played. He is currently tied for second in the NHL in overall points, matching Connor McDavid’s total in one less game played. 

Vancouver Canucks (10–12–2): 

Points: 

Quinn Hughes: 2–20–22

Elias Pettersson: 7–14–21

Kiefer Sherwood: 12–4–16

Brock Boeser: 8–7–15

Filip Hronek: 2–13–15 

Goaltenders: 

Kevin Lankinen: 4–7–2

Thatcher Demko: 5–4–0

Nikita Tolopilo: 1–0–0

Jiří Patera: 0–1–0

San Jose Sharks (11–10–3): 

Points: 

Macklin Celebrini: 14–20–34

Will Smith: 7–14–21

William Eklund: 5–9–14

Dmitry Orlov: 0–13–13

Philipp Kurashev: 6–6–12 

Goaltenders: 

Yaroslav Askarov: 8–6–1

Alex Nedeljkovic: 3–4–2

Game Information: 

Start time: 1:00 pm PT 

Venue: SAP Center

Television: Sportsnet

Radio: Sportsnet 650 

Make sure you bookmark THN's Vancouver Canucks site and add us to your favourites on Google News for the latest news, exclusive interviews, breakdowns, and so much more. Also, don't forget to leave a comment at the bottom of the page and engage with other passionate fans through our forum. This article originally appeared on The Hockey News.

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The Calgary Flames (8-14-3) will play the second of their four straight road games early Friday as they face the defending Stanley Cup champions Florida Panthers (12-10-1).

Don't let the Panthers recent slump fool you.

While Florida may be two spots shy from the basement of the Eastern Conference, out of their 52 goals scored in even-strength hockey, 32 of them have come from high-danger shots (high-danger goals), comprising of 61.54% of their goals. That is the highest of any team so far. This Florida group does not rely on lucky bounces and "puck luck" and scores quality goals.

The only problem with Florida is that their shots on goals and 52 goals are the 13th-fewest. But that is still impressive considering their time on the ice in even-strength situations is the fourth-lowest in the league.

Regardless, Calgary can ill-afford to let Florida to get any lucky goals in starting now, considering the three goals scored by Tampa Bay two days before in the first six minutes of their game were not high-danger goals. The last of them was an own goal by Kevin Bahl.

The Flames' offence also did rebound back, putting up their highest number of high-danger scoring chances (HDCF) in a game (19) this season in even-strength situations. Calgary has gone three straight games (14 vs Stars, 10 vs Canucks, 19 vs Lightning) where they've put up double-digit HDCF . They almost made it four straight, but they were one short and put up nine against the Sabres. So close...

That shows this Flames team has found their mojo to put up quality shots now.

They'll be hoping to continue that against a Panthers' defence that allow the 10th-fewest high-danger scoring chances against (HDCA).

By the way, just to put it out there, in that same list, Tampa Bay allows the third-fewest HDCA, but the 19 that they gave up to Calgary was the most given up out of all of their (Lightnings') 23 games so far. Some food for thought...

While the Flames have given up the eighth-fewest HDCA in the league, they are in the midst of a six-game streak where they've given up at least seven HDCA. In three of these games, they've given up at least one high-danger goal, with three by Chicago in their Nov. 18 encounter.

Where the Panthers lack in even-strength TOI, they make up on the power play as their TOI in the man-advantage is the fourth-most (70:38) in the league in the month of November.  Their power play percentage of 19.0% ranks them in the middle of the pack at 15th. Calgary's penalty kill percentage of 86.5% (32-for-37) is ranked eighth in the month of November. The team has also scored a shorthanded goal in each of the last two games.

It's the power play where the Flames struggle with, being the second-worst at 10.3% despite having the fifth-most PP TOI (67:22) this month. Florida's PK is ranked 17th.

The expected goalie for Calgary is Dustin Wolf who had a terrible start in the last game. But the Flames could also turn to Devin Cooley who has the lowest GAA (1.86) for netminders that have played at least seven games.

For the Panthers, two-time Vezina Trophy winner Sergei Bobrovsky is as good as they come. Although right now, his save percentage is under 0.900, which the Russian netminder has always put up by the end of seasons where he has played at least 31 games in his Hall of Fame NHL career.  The other option Florida could go with is a less-tested Daniil Tarasov who has a record of 2-3-1, GAA of 2.45 and save percentage of 0.913.

Bottom Line

The quality shots for Calgary has only improved: they were 20th in HDCA before Oct. 19. Since then, they have the second-most and are now 11th. That has to continue against Florida and more importantly translate to goals.

This defence has allowed the 15th-most shots on goal this month, but they haven't been quality shots so the blue line should play as they they've always been doing.

The power play is a long shot but would love to see a successful score off one.

Penalty-kill and whoever is in net need to do their thing.

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