Winnipeg Sun http://winnipegsun.com/sports/hockey/nhl/winnipeg-jets/trouba-joins-jets-list-of-walking- wounded

Trouba joins Jets list of walking wounded

By Ken Wiebe

The depth of the ’ defence corps is about to face its stiffest test of the season.

As the Jets get set to return from the all-star break, a source confirmed the Jets will be without blueliner for an extended period of time because of an ankle injury.

Trouba suffered the injury in the latter stages of overtime on Thursday as the Jets lost 4-3 in a shootout to the Anaheim Ducks. Trouba had an assist and played one of his best games of the season, while logging a team-high 27:05 of ice time.

Trouba has three goals and 20 points in 50 games with the Jets this season and is averaging just over 22 minutes of ice time per game.

The pairing of Trouba and has been flourishing in a shutdown role this season.

The Jets were already without Dmitry Kulikov last game after he was drilled from behind by San Jose Sharks forward Tomas Hertl.

The status of Kulikov won’t be clear until the Jets return to practice on Monday.

Trying to overcome injuries is nothing new for the Jets, who have been without top centre since Dec. 27 due to a suspected shoulder injury.

Centre has also missed the past eight games, though he is closing in on a return from an upper-body injury.

Goalie Steve Mason has missed the past six games after suffering his second concussion of the season.

With Trouba on the shelf for what is expected to be a six-to-eight week period, rookie defenceman will draw back into the Jets’ lineup and will be asked to take on a larger role.

Byfuglien figures to be reunited on the top pairing with Morrissey and should see an increase in ice time.

Poolman has one in 13 games with the Jets to go along with one goal and six points in 13 games with the of the .

The Jets have 32 games remaining in the regular season and currently sit in first place in the Central Division with a record of 29-13-8, good for 66 points — which is one more point than the Nashville Predators, who hold three games in hand.

After playing 29 of their first 50 games on the road, the Jets are about to open a 10-game home stand on Tuesday against the Tampa Bay Lightning.

Toronto Sun http://torontosun.com/sports/hockey/nhl/few-if-any-predicted-hellebuycks-ascent-to-becoming- an-all-star

Few — if any — predicted Hellebuyck's ascent to becoming an All-Star

By Michael Traikos

TAMPA, FLA. — Ask Connor Hellebuyck how he got to the All-Star Game and the Winnipeg Jets goalie will tell you it has to do with trusting that he could be amongst the league’s elite. But he also got here because of a lack of trust.

After a disastrous season last year, in which the Jets missed the playoffs in large part because Hellebuyck and back-up Michael Hutchinson combined for the third-worst save percentage in the league, the team no longer trusted that the 24-year-old was ready to handle the starting job on his own. So Winnipeg went out and signed free agent goalie Steve Mason to a two-year contract worth $8.2-million.

For Hellebuyck, it served as a wake-up call.

“It kind of said that they wanted to see some improvement,” he said of Mason coming in. “They wanted to give the team the best chance to win.”

In the end, that is what’s happened — but not like anyone had imagined. While Mason started the season as Winnipeg’s No. 1 goalie, it didn’t last long. He was pulled in the opening-night loss to Toronto and followed it up with a six-goal loss to , opening the door for Hellebuyck to come in and steal back his job.

The Michigan native didn’t waste the opportunity. Hellebuyck won his first four games and went more than a month before losing in regulation. With 26 wins (second to only Tampa Bay’s Andrei Vasilevskiy), four shutouts (tied for second) and a .924 save percentage that is amongst the league’s best, he is a big reason why the Jets are leading the Central Division and considered a Stanley Cup contender.

“I’m sure there’s lots of people who wrote me off after last year,” said Hellebuyck. “So it is pretty nice to be here and to successfully show that I actually have more. That being said, my team’s playing very good in front of me and they win a lot of games. With team success comes individual success.”

Actually, the opposite is true. If there was one thing holding back the Jets from taking that next step and becoming a Stanley Cup contender, it was goaltending. Last year, the team scored the seventh-most goals in the league but also gave up the fourth-most. This year, the team is in the top-10 in each category.

“I think we’ve learned a little how to play in front of him. That’s giving him confidence,” said Jets Blake Wheeler, who also praised the team for making life easier on the 24-year-old goalie.

“Imagine being a goalie and not seeing a lot of shots and then seeing a two-on-one, a two-on- oh, a breakaway. We’re giving up crazy, egregious opportunities to our goalie in years past. And he was a young kid. You see those opportunities and you’re giving up those goals and it rattles you. So I think we’ve done a better job of cutting that out of our game and it’s given him a lot of confidence.

“You could see in the beginning of the year his confidence was growing and now it’s to the point where when we give up a tough, two-on-one or a breakaway, he’s making the save. That’s been the biggest difference in our team this year.”

The reason Hellebuyck is making those saves is that he trusts himself to do that. When he was struggling last season, he found that he was scrambling. This summer, he sought the help of four different personal coaches — “Yeah, four coaches,” he said, laughing — who worked with Hellebuyck on everything from getting physically and mentally fitter to becoming more patient in reading and reacting.

“Patience training,” said Hellebuyck. “Not just instantly going down. Being able to read the play and read the stick before (the shot) … letting it come to you before reacting to it. There’s a ton of trust there. I think the most important part is trust, because once you have that trust foundation down, your body starts to react on its own.”

Of course, you can’t trust yourself to make the save unless you have the confidence to do so. And Hellebuyck, who struggled with his confidence a year ago, has improved that aspect of his game as well.

“I think I hold myself to a higher standard and I wanted to get back to that and kind of show every single day that I have what it takes,” he said. “You can’t ever get down, especially not in this league. Guys will be down all over you. You have to trust yourself and you have to believe in yourself every single day.”

So, does he believe he’s among the elite?

“We’re all here, right,” Hellebuyck said of being at the All-Star Game. “They’re all great goaltenders and I grew up watching them too, but I’m here with them and I’m pretty excited about that.”

______

While the so-called “Vegas flu” has been attributed to the team’s near-perfect 19-3-2 record at home, the Jets have had similar success when playing in Winnipeg, where the entertainment options are not as plentiful.

So what’s the secret behind the team’s 17-3-1 at home?

Is it that it’s so dark and so cold that the players are miserable, like the San Jose Sharks had joked in a video mocking the city earlier this year? Not quite, said Sidney Crosby, whose Pittsburgh Penguins lost 7-1 at MTS Center in October.

“They feed off their crowd,” said Crosby. “They get off to good starts and feed off their energy. They’ve always had great crowds and they are big and gritty.”

Connor Hellebuyck agreed, adding that visiting teams usually have to pass through Minnesota (17-4-4 at home) on their way in, which makes for a very difficult road trip.

“Winnipeg’s not an easy place to come into now,” he said. “Team’s travel might be tough or maybe they play Minnesota the night before, which is also a good team.”

Yahoo Sports https://sports.yahoo.com/jets-lose-jacob-trouba-6-130047179.html

Jets lose Jacob Trouba for 6-to-8 weeks: report

By Scott Billeck

The Winnipeg Jets will be without one of their top defenseman for up to two months.

The Winnipeg Sun’s Ken Wiebe broke the news late Sunday night, reporting that Jacob Trouba will miss the next six-to-eight weeks with an ankle injury he sustained in Winnipeg’s 4-3 shootout loss to the Anaheim Ducks last Thursday.

Wiebe said the injury happened near the end of overtime.

The news is a devastating blow for the Jets. Trouba has formed one half of the team’s top defensive pairing with Josh Morrissey, shutting down opponent’s top offerings.

The mess is compounded by the absence of fellow d-man Dmitry Kulikov, who is nursing an upper-body ailment after getting drilled from behind by San Jose Sharks forward Tomas Hertl a game before Trouba’s injury.

The Jets have dealt with major injuries in impressive fashion this season. They could have taken a nosedive when Mark Scheifele went down with a shoulder injury for two months, but the Jets will instead start the second half of the season atop the Central Division standings.

This isn’t to say they’d be comfortable if more injuries pile up.

The Jets are already without Adam Lowry on the front end, and now have two of their top six defensemen sitting in sickbay.

The Jets will look to rookie Tucker Poolman to soften the blow. Poolman has played in 13 games this year and offers a stay-at-home style, which will be beneficial.

Winnipeg is back in action Tuesday when they host the Tampa Bay Lightning to start a season- long 10-game homestand at Bell MTS Place.

Sporting News http://www.sportingnews.com/ca/nhl/news/nhl-injury-news-winnipeg-jets-defensman-jacob- trouba-ankle-injury-could-miss-six-weeks/ke3dph9rgd701iakogaxtwtmb

Jets defenseman Jacob Trouba could miss 6-8 weeks with ankle injury, report says

By John Arlia

Winnipeg Jets defenseman Jacob Trouba could be set for a stint on the sidelines.

The 23-year-old suffered an ankle injury late in Thursday night's 4-3 loss to the Anaheim Ducks and will miss six-to-eight weeks, according to a Winnipeg Sun report.

Trouba has three goals and 17 assists in 50 games this season for the Jets. He ranks second on the team in average ice time at 22:10 per game, trailing only fellow blueliner Dustin Byfuglien (23:24).

Winnipeg has been hit hard by the injury bug all season long. The Jets lost star center Mark Scheifele for 6-8 weeks to an upper body injury in late December and defenseman Dmitry Kulikov was hurt earlier this week after being hit from behind by Sharks' winger Tomas Hertl.

Center Adam Lowry (upper body) and goaltender Steve Mason (concussion) also remain sidelined.

Rookie defenseman Tucker Poolman, who has registered one goal in 13 games this season, will likely take Trouba's place in the lineup when the first-place Jets (29-13-8) return from the All- Star break on Tuesday against the Lightning.

The Athletic https://theathletic.com/224753/2018/01/29/lebrun-central-division-teams-could-drive-up-trade- deadline-prices-by-bidding-on-same-players/

LeBrun: Central Division teams could drive up trade deadline prices by bidding on same players

By Pierre LeBrun

TAMPA, Fla. — David Poile sat in the stands enjoying the all-star action Sunday but his mind was also drifting at times to the business ahead in the coming weeks.

“The trade deadline is a big date for everybody,” Poile told The Athletic on Sunday.

One of the NHL’s most aggressive dealers, the veteran GM was waiting for the all-star break to come and go before dialing in on his trade deadline plan. He really hasn’t talked much to teams but now plans on getting it going.

“I feel good about our team,” Poile said. “But I look at our division and we’re one point out of first and eight points from being out of the playoffs. So it’s not like there’s a lot of breathing room. I think we’ve got a pretty good team, we’ve been pretty consistent all year long. Like everybody else, we’ve had some injuries. I’d like to see us get healthy. You look at last year, you certainly need depth and a little bit of luck on the injury side. We’ll just have to see. It’s not crystal clear here what needs to take place.”

All things being equal, though, adding more scoring punch up front is the likely goal before Feb. 26

“Yeah, that’s fair,” Poile said. “Our goaltending is pretty good and we’re carrying eight defensemen. So logically that would be the area.”

What makes that interesting is that it’s also what a few other teams in the Central might be looking for. The NHL’s toughest division on the ice might be the most competitive at the trade deadline as well.

No question the St. Louis Blues could use a top-six forward as well after losing Robby Fabbri before the season even started. Maybe the Dallas Stars could use some secondary scoring behind their dynamic top line? If the Colorado Avalanche are sitting more securely in a playoff spot closer to the deadline, a source says they have identified a need for another top-nine winger. The Winnipeg Jets have been patiently built by GM Kevin Cheveldayoff but there’s no question he’s ready to deal some futures in the right deal. A veteran centre with some playoff experience might make sense. The could use a top-nine forward but after spending the assets they did on rental Martin Hanzal last year, they may need to sit tight. The are last in the group but not out yet. An eye to the future probably makes the most sense after a decade of glory.

So when you size up the division, there could be three of four teams in the Central all making similar phone calls.

“Well we might be looking to do the exact same thing,” Poile said in sizing up his divisional counterparts and the trade deadline. “So it depends how much you want to pay for something.”

The Blues and Predators especially look like they might end up bidding on similar players, whether it’s the likes of Max Pacioretty, Mike Hoffman, Rick Nash, Evander Kane, Michael Grabner or other wingers that hit the trade market between now and Feb. 26.

There are two key things to consider when you’re a GM in that spot:

Can you allow yourself to get in a bidding war with a rival and risk overpaying for the players in question just to block that rival from getting that player?

And when do you strike?

“In some cases, you like to get out ahead of it,” said Poile. “But do you pay a premium to do that? Or do you get a bargain by waiting for the last hour before the trade deadline?”

In fact, the prices for rentals did drop in the final hours last year. But some years it’s the other way around.

The Wild gave up a lot for Hanzal last year and lost in the first round. That’s the risk. Nashville felt that pain, too, in the past. It doesn’t always pay off.

“It’s always the same way, if you win some rounds in the playoffs, everything you do (at the deadline) is worthwhile. If you get beat in the first round, it’s buyer’s remorse,” Poile said.

Blues defenceman Alex Pietrangelo brought up another trade deadline factor, the delicate equilibrium of a team’s chemistry.

“It’s a tough thing because sometimes less is more in terms of chemistry,” Pietrangelo said. “If you have guys who can fill certain roles and you have a group where everyone knows their role, sometimes to bring an outside piece in and he takes someone else’s spot, it’s hard; as a GM and as a team. It’s a tough job as a GM to find the right pieces that fit.”

On the other hand, Pietrangelo said, his GM Doug Armstrong hit it out of the park in acquiring Brayden Schenn last summer.

“You look at the Schenn trade, you knew he was a good player,” said the Blues star defenceman. “But you couldn’t predict he would gel with Schwarsy [Jaden Schwartz] like he has. You knew he would fit in because of the type of player and person he is. But to predict he’d be that good is hard. You got to do your homework and hope it fits.”

Veteran goalie Pekka Rinne said it’s a mixed bag at the deadline because he never wants to lose a teammate in a deal; but obviously when his GM makes a big move to add, it also energizes the room.

“It’s a signal, yeah,” Rinne said Sunday. “At the same time, I love my team and I love my teammates. So it’s always like a grey area.”

Predators teammate P.K. Subban, one of Poile’s bolder acquisitions in the summer of 2016, says playing for a GM like Poile who isn’t afraid to make big moves motivates the players.

“Well, it makes you want to grab the opportunity. You know that he’s going to give you every opportunity to win, and win it all,” Subban said Sunday. “It’s our job every night as players in that locker room to put ourselves in the best position possible so that come playoff time we have as much as an advantage as we can. But I know that David, whether he does something or he doesn’t, he’s going to make [sure] that our team is prepared to go all the way this season.”

Nobody is more accustomed to seeing his GM add pieces at the deadline than Patrick Kane but these are unchartered waters now for the Blackhawks ahead of this deadline.

“I think the trade deadline is always fun to watch, no matter what team you’re on,” Kane said Sunday. “We’ll see what happens this year. Obviously, we have to put ourselves in a spot where hopefully we can be buyers at the deadline and be in a position to be able to do that. I think [GM] Stan [Bowman] has a good gauge of what moves to make. The Hawks are an organization that’s always trying to go for it and trying to make the right move to get us to the next level and take that next step.”

No question in my mind that the Hawks GM has the larger view in mind. Zero chance he tries to add a rental just to make the playoffs. Yes, I think he still believes in his team, but it’s about continuing to try to re-shape this team and position it to compete and contend for the next decade.

For Poile, it’s different. His team’s time is now. And he knows it. That doesn’t mean he doesn’t plan to have a competitive team for years to come, but they’re a veteran, talented team that’s very close right now. And the fact is, he’s already made a bold move this season.

“We’ve already made a significant deal with the [Kyle] Turris deal,” Poile said. “Which was like a trade deadline deal because we gave up a second and a young player in [Samuel] Girard.”

Added Rinne: “Kyle Turris was an awesome trade for us this year. So who knows. As a player, you always want to see your team be as good as possible. I think it is always interesting to see what’s going to happen [at the deadline].

In my mind, by adding Nick Bonino last summer and Turris on Nov. 5, he’s made up for the retirement of Mike Fisher and the expansion draft loss of James Neal. It’s all evened out, logic which Poile accepted.

But …

“Maybe one more move, you never know,” Poile smiled.

I’d say count on it.

TSN.ca https://www.tsn.ca/talent/jets-backing-up-words-with-actions-at-the-break-1.980964

Jets backing up words with actions at the break

By Dennis Beyak Play-By-Play Announcer

As the NHL schedule halts for a few days to showcase the game's stars, the Winnipeg Jets are leading the Central Division at the All-Star break. The Jets now start a 10-game, 22-day homestand, and it starts against the NHL’s two best teams, Tampa on Tuesday and Vegas on Thursday. The Jets have played the fewest home games in the league and have the fewest home losses in the league at this point.

So more on the Jets leading the Central. Patience, drafting and development, as well as letting young players learn on the job, have all played a part in the success. But there are other factors. The trade with Buffalo in February of 2015 was huge. We won’t relive the trade other than to say that , , and were part of it. Great work by general manager Kevin Cheveldayoff on building this team and the scouting staff for terrific picks. And yes, the organization for sticking to the plan.

Then, success in the lottery at the 2016 draft brought Patrick Laine. Yes, in sports luck is needed. After that, it’s on players and coaches for success.

As we listen to players and coaches talk, certain phrases jump out as “Easy to say, but can you follow up on it.”

So let’s look more closely at what gets said and what it means. Some are from the captain , many from coach Paul Maurice, but some from other players – their view of how this is supposed to work.

At the start of the year, the word “defend” was used a lot.

“First priority is to be good defensively." Yeah, we may have heard it a time or two. The Jets last year were a team that was guilty of neutral-zone turnovers. No more. Now one of the best teams in that department, the commitment to the defensive part of the game is reflected in the goals-for and goals-against going from a minus-7 last year to a plus-28 this year.

“Identify and handle momentum shifts. Play the same way whether you score or get scored on. Be patient in low scoring games.”

Again, a checkmark for this year’s team and an area that needed improving.

“More movement on the power play and have two units that can score”.

The Jets home power play is tops in the NHL, while the power play overall is second in the league. A few changes on the kill, as well.

“Cross-seam plays are hard on goaltenders. They need to know where the shot is coming from and fight to see it.”

With injuries, players have moved around. has gone from right wing to centre, from the fourth line to the second line and will set a career high in goals, , from left wing to centre, and on it goes. Copp summed it up early in the season when talking about positional adjustments –“Get used to it, accept it, thrive on it." Deal with the here and now was the plan.

We heard plenty of “Be good today, take care of today, it’s about today.”

They have stuck to those words. And that probably is the attitude you need in the wildly competitive Central Division. The Jets have not gone more than two games without picking up at least a point. Going into the All-Star break they had points in four straight (3-0-1) and were 9- 2-2 since the Christmas break.

“Nothing in the NHL is permanent, whether it be winning streaks, losing streaks, scoring slumps, line combinations, momentum swings. It’s how you handle it that matters.”

“Be ready to compete. That is how we are wired. That is how we prepare.”

The Jets lead the league in first-period goals scored.

Individually, All-Star sits second in wins. He has been terrific and his numbers back that up. And as his game improved, so did the team play. Twenty-two times he has given up two or fewer in a game.

On the Jets' style, this from Coach Maurice: “Play as simple and as fast as possible. Simple is needed for it to be fast. The game is about details, but you can’t focus on 100 details. The minute you slow down, nothing else matters.”

The Jets hope to have and back right after the All-Star break, but and were both banged-up in the Anaheim game. Trouba left in overtime and did not return. Mark Schiefele, and remain out.

The Jets are still a young team, and the young players that “learned the NHL game on the job” play critical roles in the team’s success.

So add this phrase to the mix - “You can’t fast track experience.” www.winnipegjets.com https://www.nhl.com/jets/news/all-star-weekend-comes-to-a-close-for-wheeler-and-hellebuyck/c- 295388316

All-Star weekend comes to a close for Wheeler and Hellebuyck Wheeler records assist; Hellebuyck makes five saves by Mitchell Clinton @MitchellClinton / WinnipegJets.com

TAMPA BAY, Florida - It's not too often Blake Wheeler and Connor Hellebuyck are smiling shortly after a loss.

But that was the case on Sunday, after Hellebuyck, Wheeler, and the Central Division dropped a 5-2 decision to the Pacific Division in the 2018 NHL All-Star semi-final.

Sure, it would have been nice to go on to the final and compete for the prize money, but both players - experiencing their first All-Star festivities - loved every minute of the weekend.

"It was a great event. It's something you always watch growing up," said Wheeler, who assisted on Nathan MacKinnon's goal that opened the scoring.

"To take part in it was a ton of fun. They've got a good event out there. It's fun for the fans, probably not a whole lot of fun for the goalies, but it was a good time."

Hellebuyck played in the second ten-minute half, and while he made five saves on the eight shots he faced, two of the three that did get by him were perfect shots, off the inside of the post and in.

"It started to look like an All-Star Game right? Guys started to get their hands under them and I was the product of that," said Hellebuyck with a grin.

"These guys are All-Stars and they're here for a reason. When we scored, it was the same way. If you're going to be beat, you want to be beat off the post or elbow and in. I'll give him this one, but that's the last you're going to get this year."

Drew Doughty, James Neal, and Brock Boeser were the ones to beat Hellebuyck for the Pacific Division, with Brent Burns and Neal adding empty net goals. Central Division captain P.K. Subban had the other goal for his squad.

The 24-year-old Hellebuyck is trying to trade sticks with the other seven goaltenders here this weekend.

"All these guys are great guys. I got along with all of them," said Hellebuyck. "To meet some guys that I was looking forward to meeting, growing up watching them, and now getting to play with them, it's a big moment in my life."

Ditto, for the 31-year-old Wheeler, who was excited going into the event to enjoy everything the three days in Tampa Bay had to bring with the ones closest to him.

"Spending time with my wife and kids, and having my son Louie take part in the Skills a little bit on the bench, I'll remember that forever," said Wheeler. "Obviously the NHL does a great job with everything. But everything is run so well. You show up, you get treated unbelievably by the Lightning organization. The fans here were incredible. We were treated first class the whole way, so it was awesome."