After nearly making the roster straight out of camp, and lighting up the AHL early in the season, Denton Mateychuk was called up to provide another depth option over Jack Johnson and Jordan Harris. By the end of the season, he was the No. 2 Defenseman behind Zach Werenski, and even played some with Z on the top pair.
Despite his young age, Mateychuk offered stability among a defensive unit that was more than accident prone. He wasn’t dazzling offensively, only putting up 13 points in 45 games, but was excellent at extending possessions and creating opportunities. He formed great chemistry with pending UFA Ivan Provorov through January and February, but by my eye seemed to struggle down the stretch along with the rest of the roster.