Proposed Matheson Trade Makes Little Sense for Canadiens or Maple Leafs

A recent trade pitch from Heavy.com has the Toronto Maple Leafs acquiring veteran defenseman Mike Matheson from the Montreal Canadiens in exchange for Simon Benoit, restricted free agent Nick Robertson, and a 2028 third-round pick. While the idea might seem intriguing on paper—especially for a Toronto team looking to add offensive punch from the blue line—the numbers don’t add up terribly well.

Matheson, entering the final year of his eight-year, $39 million contract, carries a $4.875 million cap hit. In this hypothetical deal, the Leafs would send out Benoit’s $1.35 million salary and the unsigned Robertson, meaning the club would be taking on over $3.5 million in additional cap obligations. As it stands, the Maple Leafs don’t have that kind of space to play with. In fact, the deal would put them roughly $675,000 over the salary cap, forcing GM Brad Treliving to make additional moves just to stay compliant.

That’s a steep price for a player they don’t necessarily need.

Toronto’s blue line is already deep, especially with recent additions like Chris Tanev and Oliver Ekman-Larsson. The team also has Morgan Rielly and Jake McCabe, with Brandon Carlo acquired at last season’s trade deadline.

Treliving has made it clear he likes the “length” and physicality of his defense corps. While Matheson would add some offensive flair—he posted 31 points in 80 games last season—he doesn’t offer enough of a game-changing upgrade to justify the cap crunch when the real need is more scoring up front. If the idea is to gain that scoring from the back end, it can only mean Toronto has run out of realistic options for their top-six forward group.

Canadiens Likely Don’t Love This Trade Either

The Canadiens, for their part, could benefit from shedding salary on a player they no longer really need and acquiring two young, controllable pieces. However, as one commenter on the post noted, GM Kent Hughes likes Matheson and has already said there is no rush to trade the defenseman. The Canadiens need a second-line center, and the return from Toronto doesn’t help fill that need.

From Toronto’s perspective, this move feels like a forced fit. For Montreal, it removes a tradeable asset and doesn’t bring them back what they’re ideally looking for.