Montreal Canadiens place Mike Matheson on injured reserve

Canadiens general manager Kent Hughes said Wednesday that Matheson recently underwent an MRI to help determine the magnitude of the injury. Matheson’s recovery timeline is unclear at this point, but he will have to remain on injured reserve for at least seven days before he can be activated again.

Matheson, 28, scored 11 goals and 31 points while averaging 18:48 in 74 games with the Pittsburgh Penguins during the 2021–22 regular season. He added one goal and six points in seven playoff games with the club.

With Thursday’s roster moves, the Canadiens have seven defensemen on their active roster: David Savard, Chris Wideman, Jordan Harris, Kaiden Guhle, Arber Xhekaj, Johnathan Kovacevic, and Schueneman. Both Matheson and Joel Edmundson are currently on IR.

Schueneman, 27, split the 2021–22 season between the AHL and the NHL. He scored six points (two goals, four assists) in 24 games with the Canadiens and 11 points (four goals, seven assists) in 32 games with the Laval Rocket.

Matheson is signed through the end of the 2025–26 season at a $4.875 million cap hit. The Montreal product will have to wait to play his first regular-season NHL game in front of his hometown fans at Bell Centre.