My perspective.. Matty gets hurt because he isn't expecting certain hits and get gets jarred in compromising positions. If he played ready to be destroyed and dish back some of the abuse he gets it would go a long way. Break some ones wrist after getting cross checked to your shoulders for christ sakes..
Its weird like.. if someone hit me over and over they would get laid out with equally or with more force.
I like this take. If you compare and contrast the way two big men like Matthews and Draisaitl carry their bodies on the ice I would say Matthews is always playing loose and ready to make high finesse plays (not dissimilar to the way Jake Gardiner was always loose) whereas Draisaitl always seems to have the shoulders hunched, elbows out and braced for impact. Basically looks like one guys is in a relaxed state and the other in flex, and the latter protects against sudden hits cause you’re ready for it.
In terms meanness, I would agree that growing up watching Clark and Gilmour why Matthews wouldn’t absolutely destroy all challengers. It buys you more space if you’re an absolute menace to play against and is better for your health. When he wants to he’s an absolute beast vs guys like Shea Weber etc. But we are not all wired the same way.