It's hard to find a reason not to like Mathieu Olivier, unless you're on the receiving end of his punches. According to the HockeyFights.com community, Olivier went undefeated (with one tie) in his nine recorded bouts this season, with his closest call coming in a narrow draw against Nick Deslauriers on March 17.
He effectively retained his unofficial NHL “heavyweight champion” title for another year. Olivier finished the season with 101 penalty minutes and 209 hits on Jackets opponents.
But Olivier didn’t just throw his weight around. In his fourth full season in Columbus, he continued to bring more than physicality. He maintained his 16% shooting touch, hitting double‑digit goals again with 15, plus 16 assists.
His maturity, growing leadership presence, and genuine connection with fans and media made him an invaluable part of the locker room and the Columbus community. Both Jeff Svoboda of BlueJackets.com and I spent time earlier in the season talking about what a genuinely good human being Olivier is, and it showed throughout the year.
During our sit-down interview last summer, Mathieu talked at length about wanting to leave a legacy in Columbus similar to that of Jody Shelley or Jared Boll, enforcers that ended up establishing long “fan-favorite” reputations in Columbus.
It’s easy to see that he’s already been doing so since he first showed up on the ice at Nationwide Arena, and now Olivier jerseys are flying off the shelves at the Blue Lines perhaps with even more regularity than Shelley 45s or Boll 40s ever did.
Olivier finished with a 15‑11‑26 line in 62 games and helped form the Jackets’ most consistent forward trio alongside Cole Sillinger and Charlie Coyle. The line logged 419 minutes together, the most of any Columbus forward combination and 15th‑most in the NHL, and still posted a positive expected‑goals share and strong underlying numbers. Olivier also wrapped the season with a +13 rating.
He earned every penny of his six‑year, $3 million AAV extension that keeps him in Columbus through 2031. His role may grow even further next season. With rumors swirling about Boone Jenner’s future and the possibility of Zach Werenski being elevated to captain, Olivier becomes a natural candidate to wear the “A” more regularly. “Ollie” stepping into a more visible leadership role feels like a move the Union Blue faithful would welcome without hesitation.
Olivier has firmly established his on-ice role, however, as a bottom-six forward that can shoot the daylights out, and knock the daylights out, of the Jackets’ opponents, and he would be going anywhere anytime soon.
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