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QMJHL Charlottetown Islanders

Meet the Isles' Top Rookie: Matthew Butler

February 7, 2024 - Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League (QMJHL)
Charlottetown Islanders News Release


When Matthew Butler was six years old, he and his brother would go over to their neighbour's backyard rink to shoot pucks.

They would be out all day, every day in the winter months. That's where he fell in love with hockey.

It was near the same thing every day until he moved away at age 15 to play hockey at Shattuck St. Mary's in Faribault, MN.

Butler is among many recognizable hockey icons who have gone through the program. Sidney Crosby, Jonathan Toews, and Zach Parise to name a few.

In 57 games with the school at the U16 AAA level, he scored 16 goals, 47 assists for 63 points.

Then, hockey media icon Ron MacLean made a video in efforts to bring Butler to Prince Edward Island to play for the Islanders.

"It was really special," he said. "It was a pretty unreal feeling that they wanted me here. When you have someone that high calibre make a video with your jersey on, it helps."

As Shattuck St. Mary's was a U16 program, the Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League was Butler's first taste at playing against players aged 17 to 20.

"It's a faster game but when you play every day you kind of get into a routine; get into the pace of the game. I just keep building off of every day at practice and in the games," he said. "I think it's just important to keep playing, to figure yourself as a player and keep growing."

He has fit in nicely with the Islanders as he is a top-10 rookie in the league in terms of scoring. Through 49 games, he has six goals and 26 assists for 32 points. He has been one of the Islanders' top producers since the Christmas break with a five-game point streak in the middle of January.

Having Marcus Kearsey, another Newfoundlander, on the team has helped Butler settle into Charlottetown.

"He drives me to school every day; we're pretty close," he said. "It's good to have another person from Newfoundland to bond with."

The rest of the leadership group and Head Coach Jim Hulton, have also been fantastic in supporting Butler's development.

"Huckins, Horth, Morneau, all the letters on our team have been good role models for me. There's nothing else I could ask for," he said. "Jim (Hulton) has helped me become a player I didn't think I could be. He helps me grow every single day, do the things I didn't think I could do. He just wants the best out of me."

Hulton knows what he has with Butler's skill on the ice.

"He's a guy who's shown tremendous growth over the course of the season and another guy post-Christmas where you could see the confidence go on the rise," he said.

He has big plans for Butler.

"We think he's our bonafide number-one centre that every contending team needs to have. He even reminds me of Xavier Simoneau. If you look at his combination with Michaud and Shields, these guys could be together for a number of years and they could easily make up our number-one line in the future."

Butler feels like he's in a great place moving forward.

Butler and the Isles hit the ice again this Friday, Feb. 9, as they host the Saint John Sea Dogs. It's also 90s night at the Eastlink Centre! The first 500 fans in attendance will take home a limited edition 90s themed team poster so make sure you get here early. Tickets are on sale at the Eastlink Centre box office. Fans can also purchase tickets online or over the phone at (902) 629-6625.

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Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League Stories from February 7, 2024


The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

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