Matheson's Mailbag: Assisting History

Throughout the entire 2016-17 season, Florida Panthers rookie defenseman Mike Matheson will be answering all of your questions about life on and off the ice in his monthly mailbag for FloridaPanthers.com.
Have a question you want answered? Tweet them using #MathesonsMailbag!

@Music_JZ: What was it like being on the ice and participating in Jaromir Jagr's legendary goal?
It's crazy to think of, really. It's kind of weird how it happened. For a point like that, you would have thought that it would be Jonathan Huberdeau or Aleksander Barkov setting him up for an amazing goal because they've done so much to get him to that spot and played with him for so long. But then I just kind of swooped in and shot it off his butt. In that sense, it feels like I was almost a fan watching it all unfold. It was just so special to be a part of it.
I've watched Jagr my whole life, but I wasn't really thinking about the historical aspect of everything until after the game. I was just so in the moment and enjoying watching the celebration. I mean, to see a whole NHL game come to a halt for something so special was really cool to be a part of.
After the game, they brought the puck into the locker room, and Mark Pysyk, Dylan McIlrath and myself were all just kind of standing there in disbelief. We knew we had to take a picture with it, so all three of us ended up holding it together.

@BarryARothman: If you could pick any defensive partner from among all former NHL players, who would it be?
Nick Lidström.
Growing up, I would watch his clips all the time. As I got older, I started watching them as less of a fan and more as someone trying to learn from him. My college advisor at the time was always getting me video of his shifts and stuff like that while I was going through midget and he was still playing in Detroit. Lidström did everything perfect. If you can come anywhere close to being able to do what he did, then you're on the right track.
@AndrewLevine5: How do you deal with the changing of pairings from game to game?
I think that we have good chemistry among all seven of us. We've been playing with each other throughout the whole year, so when there is shuffling it's pretty seamless. It's a pretty easy transition as long as we're all talking to each other, which it seems we do a pretty good job of. It's not like we're getting mad at each other or anything like that. The bench is pretty calm in that sense. I think it's less like we're three groups of pairings and more just seven guys that are going into each game together. I think we have seven really good defensemen.
@marchegoat: Who's your favorite guy to play with?
It's tough to say.
I enjoy several things about each guy on the team. One thing that I learned from Rob Schremp in Portland last year was to take something that each person does well and learn from it. But if I had to pick one guy, I'd say Mark Pysyk. We've been playing with each other a lot lately, especially on the penalty kill and at even strength. We get along really well and also seem to communicate really well. We get each other. We're really starting to understand each other's tendencies.
For me, it's great to have such steady player to play with. He doesn't make any mistakes and can also make plays offensively, whether it's making plays on the blue line or finding seems through the neutral zone. I just love playing with him. He makes it really easy for me.
@PTPHockey: What's the best Christmas gift you've ever given and received?
When I was younger, we went to the Bahamas as a family.
My godparents got us that as a gift. That was really fun. It's definitely one of my favorite places that I've been to so far. We went to the Atlantis Hotel and it was an incredible experience. We did the underwater waterslide and everything.
As for the best I've given, we have a Fathers Trip coming up, so I'm getting my dad a flight down here to join up with us before we leave and then he'll go on the trip with us. I'm excited to give it to him. It's kind of a celebration of where I've been able to get to and the amount of help that he's provided me. Whether it was as a dad or as a coach, he's just always been so supportive. Hopefully there's a Moms' Trip in the future so that I can thank her, too.
@GianniZandri: Jonathan Huberdeau told me two years ago that Nick Bjugstad wasn't good at soccer but was trying. Is he getting any better?
Ha! I don't play much soccer because I'm terrible, but I've heard that Bjugy's gotten better.
Thanks for your questions and keep them coming!