As always, Henderson was the top defender on this Lakers team and was crucial to their path to the finals. The lateral mobility, puck-moving, and willingness to get up in the play were all displayed throughout the Silver Stick every game. His confidence in the offensive zone was apparent, rotating around, looking for ways to get in on the attack and make something happen. As a whole, he did a stellar job breaking up plays, retrieving pucks, and getting pucks out of his zone up to his forwards and was their primary transition engine. However, there were some moments where I felt he could have taken the extra second to scan for a pass or rely on his high-end mobility to dodge a forechecker vs. chipping pucks out of his end when faced with pressure. It reminded me of how I felt about Carter Hicks last year at times, the potential always being there, but I just wanted to see some tweaks to how he was using his tools to impact the game more positively. It isn't a significant concern for me, but just an area I noted that could see some improvement over the remainder of the year.

I was familiar with a few players at the Port Huron Silver Stick, having watched the Alliance U15 All-Star Game, and Henderson was one of them. What I appreciated most about Matt's game was his patience with the puck and his desire to play with control. Whenever he had the puck, he was calm, even under pressure, and constantly looked for a path to link together a controlled sequence. Never did he chip pucks in or out of the zone, everything he did was about getting the puck out of his zone or into the offensive third with control. It may seem rudimentary, but finding defenders with this mindset can be challenging and will always be ones I appreciate.

Like his teammate Barch, Henderson was another Laker who I had high on my watchlist entering the year, and he certainly didn't disappoint. He has all the skating abilities I'm looking for in a defender, and how he relied on his feet to drive play was what made his play over the Titans Tournament so impressive. Whether it was securing a dumped-in puck without losing any momentum, exploding up ice carrying the puck through the neutral zone, or walking the blueline with lateral cuts to dodge forecheckers, it all revolved around his footwork. Henderson is a powerful straight-line skater with all the lateral maneuverability to help him in any situation. His mobility allowed him to be confident to play with control, escape pressure repeatedly, navigate through defenders, and maintain possession. While the moments of him rushing the puck end to end were the highlights of my viewings of Matthew's game, there was a solid balance of sometimes just being that simple puck mover who got the puck up ice to his forwards. There was a good volume of offensive impact and sparking chances, but this mould of a mobile defender who gets the puck up ice with control almost every time he touched the puck was the central theme I came away with, and what makes me so optimistic about Henderson's game moving forward.

The second defender mentioned in this article, and our last to be spoken of here today, Matthew Henderson of the Huron Perth Lakers was one of the higher-end puck distributing defenders identified across the event, supporting his forwards in such a way he drove great play driving results and helped contribute greatly to offensive chances. Evasive, quick, and intelligent high in the offensive zone, he could easily walk around checkers thanks to quick hands and good reads. Sucking in plenty of bodies and attention, he made quick passes to the wings who which could then hit the now open man in the center of the ice with a pass, as Henderson had drawn in the high coverage to himself, leaving his teammate with a bit more space. Once again, Henderson was one of few defenders who took the reigns in transition, a strong forward stride with a decent set of acceleration strides, he flew up the ice quickly and powerfully, bypassing any traffic if he was given ice. On the defensive side of the puck I’d say there wasn’t anything too out of the ordinary, but the offensive game, skating, and speed made Henderson a unique breed relative to other defenders.

Henderson was the backbone of this Huron-Perth Lakers team from the back end, sparking controlled transitions repeatedly. Breakouts were so clean with Henderson involved, as he was calm under pressure and had all the mobility to dodge forecheckers and then hit an outlet pass. His turns and pivots are slick and were one of the main tools I noted that helped him spin off pressure and maintain possession of the puck. If the space was there, he'd never hesitate to explode up ice and carry the puck cleanly from end to end, and all in all, he was just so impactful at helping HPL enter the offensive zone with control. Confidence, mobility, and transition impact were the primary elements that landed Henderson on my initial 2025 OHL Draft rankings, and that was more of what I saw at the Alliance Face-Off, cementing his status as a top defender to watch this season.

Huron-Perth was hard to keep pinned down in their end, much of which was due to Matthew’s ability to drive breakouts. He kept himself poised and in control, never rushing when pressured by forecheckers, and instead relying on his swiftness to maneuver around them to move the puck up the ice or carry it through the neutral zone himself. His transitional play made him integral in securing offensive zone control for Huron-Perth. He acted as his team's quarterback on the powerplay, even securing a power play goal to give his team the lead early in the game, which they never ended up trailing.

Henderson is a player our team raved about for his performance at the Nashville Kings of Spring and the CCM 68, so I was curious to see his game. Matthew didn't take long to jump off the page and show why our scouts applauded his game at both events. He is an incredibly mobile defender who wants to involve himself in everything. Henderson mostly flexed his dominance within the offensive zone. He was very effective at walking the line, skirting oncoming pressure with lateral moves, and opening up a passing or shooting lane to exploit. There were similar flashes combining high-end puck skills and lateral mobility to transition the puck, but his play within the offensive zone was the focal point of Henderson's contributions.