Mathieu Joseph speaks out on being a healthy scratch in game against his brother
It could have been a huge moment for him and his family. Instead, Mathieu Joseph found himself on the sidelines Wednesday night, a healthy scratch in what would have been the first time he and his brother Pierre-Olivier Joseph of the Pittsburgh Penguins would have faced each other in the NHL. As many as 50 family members had tickets for the game in Ottawa, but they ended up only seeing one family member. While no one has said exactly why Joseph was scratched, we do know if was for reasons not related to hockey. Joseph said Thursday he accepts the punishment.
"I'm just going to talk about this once. This was an internal thing. I did a mistake and I was ready to assume the consequences of it. And this on me, and it's my responsibility. I know I can do better and I will," said Joseph when asked about the incident by reporters.
"It was a mistake and I'm ready to assume the consequences," he continued. "It's on me and its my responsibility. I know I can be better and I will. I'm an adult. It's part of hockey. I'm ready to move forward and excited to get back in the line-up."
It was noted that Joseph was very calm and relaxed during media availability Thursday and Ottawa coach Dj Smith, who made the decision to sit Joseph, was the same. Either there's no tension between the two anymore, or they are both hiding it well.
There has been plenty of speculation over why Joseph sat when he's clearly better than other players who were in the lineup. Some possibilities include missing team breakfast or a team meeting. Whatever the reason, it seems Joseph and his coach are ready to move on and concentrate on playing hockey. The Penguins and Sens faceoff again Friday night in Pittsburgh, and both Joseph brothers are expected to be in the lineup.
| G | A | PTS | ||
| Kyle Connor | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Alex Tuch | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Owen Power | - | 2 | 2 | |
| Michael Bunting | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Drew Helleson | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Jirí Kulich | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Isac Lundestrom | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Vladislav Namestnikov | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Nino Niederreiter | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Gabriel Vilardi | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Jason Zucker | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Leo Carlsson | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Nikolaj Ehlers | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Ross Johnston | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Evgeni Malkin | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Josh Morrissey | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Cole Perfetti | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Bryan Rust | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Mark Scheifele | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Trevor Zegras | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Complete stats | ||||
| STANDINGS 2024-2025 | ||||||
TOP 10 | GP | W | L | OL | PTS | |
Jets | 19 | 16 | 3 | - | 32 | |
Wild | 19 | 13 | 3 | 3 | 29 | |
Hurricanes | 19 | 14 | 5 | - | 28 | |
Devils | 22 | 13 | 7 | 2 | 28 | |
Capitals | 19 | 13 | 5 | 1 | 27 | |
Golden Knights | 20 | 12 | 6 | 2 | 26 | |
Maple Leafs | 20 | 12 | 6 | 2 | 26 | |
Rangers | 18 | 12 | 5 | 1 | 25 | |
Panthers | 20 | 12 | 7 | 1 | 25 | |
Flames | 20 | 11 | 6 | 3 | 25 | |
| Conference | Cumulative | ||||||