Winnipeg Free Press https://www.winnipegfreepress.com/sports/hockey/jets/after-15-games-in-28-days-weary-jets- are-looking--to-practice-463734873.html?k=8sUz7u

Making up for lost practices

By: Mike McIntyre

It is one of the all-time great rants in sports history, one that spawned numerous internet memes and GIFs. Allen Iverson, then a star with the Philadelphia 76ers of the National Basketball Association, delivered a sound bite for the ages when asked about his penchant for missing practices.

"We’re talking about practice, man. What are we talking about? Practice? We’re talking about practice, man," an incredulous Iverson said as part of the memorable 2002 monologue in which he would go on to use the word "practice" 22 times.

Well, with apologies to the hall of famer, we’re here today to talk about practice. Or, in the case of the , the lack thereof.

By our count, the Jets have had 11 practices scheduled since the beginning of November. But only four of those proceeded as planned, the last one occurring Nov. 23. Three others became sparsely attended optional skates and the remaining four were cancelled by the coaching staff.

Now, nobody is accusing the Jets of being lazy. They just wrapped up a gruelling part of their schedule in which they played 15 games in 28 days, spanning all four time zones. They went 9- 4-2 during that span, so they’ve clearly been doing plenty of good things.

Following Monday’s 5-1 win against the Canucks, the Jets enjoyed a day off on Tuesday. With their first back-to-back days without a game in more than a month, they’ll return to the ice today for their first team practice in almost three weeks.

But unlike Iverson, several players say they’re actually looking forward to it. Veteran Bryan Little said some bad habits have started to creep into their game, magnified during last week’s disappointing road trip, when they went 0-2-1 in Detroit, Sunrise, Fla., and Tampa.

"It’s always nice to get a good practice in once in a while. We’re trying to manage rest right now. When we do get a practice in it’ll probably be beneficial for us, because we haven’t had one in so long," Little said on Monday. "You get to work on things you might need tuning up, and we’ve got a couple things we could work on right now."

Defenceman Josh Morrissey said getting enough rest and avoiding rust is a bit of a balancing act. In a month of games every second day and occasional back-to-back contests, players have turned to off-ice teaching to help keep them sharp.

"On off days and days between games when we’re playing every second day, sometimes it’s best just to get the rest," he said. "Sometimes you miss out on some practice time. That’s where we have to take advantage of some video and some of the teaching we can do off the ice."

Following Monday’s win, head coach said the past month has been about survival for his squad. While there have been some bumps along the way, he doesn’t believe the lack of practice is to blame.

"I think where we’ve been a little off at times is with our hands... we’re not hitting the net as much as we’d like," he said.

"We’ve been a bit loopy in some of our defence. I think maybe that’s sometimes in your legs, stopping and starting and grinding. But none of it is far enough off for me to say that’s the deciding factor. So we just deal with it the best that we can and we keep them off the ice a little bit. The guys will tell you they don’t miss the practising."

Maurice said his team will have spent 35 or 36 days either on an a plane or on the road in a block between Nov. 5 and Christmas, when they’ll already pass the halfway of their road schedule. Things lighten up in the new year, with plenty of home games, including 10 straight at Bell MTS Place in February.

"Everybody gets tired, everybody gets fatigued. We’re actually happy about our schedule," Maurice said. "It’s still way better than it was a year ago when we did this for two months with six sets of back-to-backs at 12 time-zone changes. So I’m not complaining about the schedule. Because I’ve seen it be a lot worse. It’s just what we have to deal with in Winnipeg."

Little said fatigue is certainly an issue. "(It) feels like we’ve been on the road constantly for the last month-and-a-half," he said.

That might explain why the Jets are winless in their past five games away from home (0-3-2). Fortunately, they’ve been red-hot in Winnipeg, winning seven in a row and collecting points in 11 straight (10-0-1).

"I don’t know what it is. We don’t really talk about it. We have that energy at home," he said.

Winnipeg will try to keep that streak going when they host the on Thursday night. https://www.winnipegfreepress.com/sports/hockey/jets/jets-defencemen-step-up-when-two-go- down-463742063.html

Defencemen step up when two stalwarts go down

By: Mike McIntyre

It’s far from an ideal situation for the Winnipeg Jets, with veteran defencemen Dustin Byfuglien and Toby Enstrom on the shelf with injuries, but the first test without the big-minute blue-liners went about as smoothly as possible.

The Jets held the to just one on 26 shots in Monday night’s victory, with the rest of the defence stepping up to play bigger roles. It was the kind of collective effort that will be needed going forward if they are to maintain their hot start to the season.

Tyler Myers led the team with 23:24 in ice time and continued his run of strong play, chipping in an assist and going plus-three. Right behind him was Jacob Trouba, who logged 23:14 on the ice and dished out a team-high four hits.

Josh Morrissey was also relied on more than usual, playing 21:21 and scoring a beautiful goal on a three-on-one rush. He and Trouba were matched up for much of the night against Vancouver’s top of twins Henrik and and Brock Boeser, the team’s leading scorer.

Myers’ partner, Dmitry Kulikov, scored the game’s opening goal and played 18:31, while the new-look third pairing of Ben Chiarot (15:51) and rookie Tucker Poolman (13:33) more than held their own against the Canucks. For Poolman, it was just his fourth NHL game and the first in two months.

"I thought they were good. Tucker looked smooth, he didn’t show any nervousness out there. He moved the puck, he played the same game that he played for us at the start of the year, so I liked that a lot," Jets head coach Paul Maurice said following the game. "I thought Morrissey and Trouba got stronger as the game went on. Those guys got some miles on them, they play against the other team’s best every night and it’s a challenge every night. I thought those guys got stronger, like our team did."

Morrissey said everyone realizes they need to pick up the slack, especially with Byfuglien expected to be out until at least after Christmas with a lower-body injury suffered Saturday in Tampa Bay against the Lightning. Enstrom has been sidelined more than three weeks and is at least another month from returning.

"You can’t replace (Byfuglien), obviously, and that’s not what we are going to try and do as a back end. We all want to pick up some of those minutes. I thought, as a whole, (Poolman) came in and played awesome, and that’s one of those things where you try to pick up those minutes. Everyone has to try and do a little bit more and help collectively as a back end," Morrissey said.

The Jets will likely recall another from the in the coming days to give them some additional depth, as they currently have no other healthy bodies for their blue line.

Options could include off-season free agent signing Cam Schilling, who has put up three goals and 17 assists for the Moose this season. That puts him third among all defencemen in scoring and his plus-21 leads the league. Veteran Julian Melchiori is another possibility, having previously been with the Jets. He’s got four goals and eight assists. Rookie Sami Niku is also off to a terrific start, with two goals and 14 assists, which is second- best among first-year defencemen in the AHL.

Winnipeg Sun http://winnipegsun.com/sports/hockey/nhl/winnipeg-jets/mason-not-messing-with-brain-injury

Mason not messing with brain injury

By Paul Friesen

Steve Mason was playing with his daughter, Tuesday, when he took some time to talk about the second concussion of his career.

That family moment had everything to do with what Mason and I talked about for the next eight minutes.

Less than 24 hours earlier, the Winnipeg Jets goalie had been removed from the injured reserve list and cleared to play again.

It had been more than two weeks since Jannik Hansen’s hard off his mask rattled Mason’s brain in San Jose.

Earlier in his career, Mason might not have been as willing to let trainers know he wasn’t feeling right.

But that night, after going to the dressing room for the first intermission, he didn’t hide the headache and nausea that had hit him.

“When I first got hit I just thought it was just a good shot. I wasn’t really fazed or anything by it,” Mason said. “But as the period progressed things weren’t feeling right. When you’re dealing with your brain or your head, it’s something you don’t want to mess around with. It’s been highlighted in sports the last number of years what can happen if you don’t treat the brain properly and with respect, I guess.

“It’s something I felt needed to be addressed.”

Perhaps the best thing to come out of improved concussion awareness is having players shed the tough-guy approach to the game’s invisible injury.

Instead of “sucking it up” and going back out for the second period, Mason did the smart thing.

The strong thing.

“As you get older you see things (differently),” he said. “And I’ve had a concussion before. It’s my brain, and after hockey I’d like to be living a normal life.”

Mason’s first concussion was in April, 2014, when he was with Philadelphia.

He spent a similar amount of time on the sidelines, even missing some playoff games.

The stakes were high this time, too.

After a nightmare start with the Jets, the 29-year-old from Oakville, Ont., had finally started to feel like a contributing member of his new team.

He’d won his last two starts going into that game against the Sharks, allowing just two goals on 69 shots.

And he was getting the net for the second time in three games – the first time that had happened since a disastrous first two games of the season.

“I finally had got to a place where I was comfortable playing behind a new team, and had a game where I wanted it to be,” Mason said. “I finally got a couple of wins going and a bit of a streak there and playing a little more often.”

The concussion derailed all that.

Suddenly Mason was struggling to focus on simple, day-to-day tasks, never mind pucks coming at him at 90-plus miles an hour.

“Driving was a big thing,” he said. “Doing the (concussion) testing on the computer. After spending an hour or so doing that, it didn’t feel great after focusing on a screen like that. Little things throughout the day would definitely make you feel not normal.”

Mason hadn’t expected this brain injury to keep him out this long.

But he couldn’t have hid the symptoms, even he’d wanted to.

“It showed in the results on the test.”

The NHL’s concussion protocol includes a test that involves computer, verbal and written tasks. The results are compared to those of a baseline test taken before the season.

“It’s a frustrating process,” Mason said. “Because for parts of the day you feel great. And then certain things make the head feel not normal. With any concussions you’ve just to let them run their course.

“It’s your head. It’s not just your foot, or something… so you be patient with it.”

After some light skating, then increasingly hard workouts, Mason finally got the point where he was symptom-free.

But he got one more scare when he rejoined the Jets for a game-day skate in Tampa Bay, taking, of all things, a shot off the mask.

“I guess that was a good trial run,” he said, chuckling. “It was, ‘OK, do I have a headache?’ And, ‘No, I don’t. I guess things are good to go.’ ”

Two days later, he was back on the bench, backing up Connor Hellebuyck for Monday’s win over Vancouver.

“All healed up now… I’m finally feeling good,” Mason said. “Now it’s just a matter of putting it into a game.”

He’ll likely get a chance to pick up where he left off next weekend, when the Jets play a home- and-home set with division rival St. Louis.

But first things, first.

“She’s got her toys,” Mason said of his daughter. “And is just itching to be playing right now.”

She’s not the only one. http://winnipegsun.com/sports/hockey/nhl/winnipeg-jets/innocent-plays-can-do-serious-damage

Innocent plays can do serious damage

By Paul Friesen

The crushing, shoulder-to-head shots or collisions with the boards get most of the attention.

But those aren’t the only plays that can cause brain injuries.

Winnipeg Jets goalie Steve Mason found that out when he was concussed from taking a puck off his mask, just over two weeks ago.

“A lot of times plays that don’t look like anything can cause the biggest damage up there,” Mason said. “I got to know Chris Pronger in Philadelphia. And it wasn’t even a real big hit, and he struggled a long time playing with kids and doing simple things like reading.

“That’s definitely something I wouldn’t want to be dealing with.”

Mason’s concussion just over two weeks ago was the second of his NHL career.

But he says he’s not at the point of worrying about his future.

“Not really. As long as concussions don’t become a regular occurrence. If you handle them properly once you get the first sign of them. If you’re constantly getting these things, that’s when I would start to worry. But I’m not worried right now.

“Hopefully that’s the last one I’ll be dealing with.”

NHL.com https://www.nhl.com/news/mathieu-perreault-of-winnipeg-jets-providing-depth-versatility/c- 293933294?tid=284438166

Perreault providing depth, versatility for Jets Whether on first or fourth line, center key contributor to Winnipeg's strong start by Tim Campbell @TimNHL / NHL.com Staff Writer

WINNIPEG -- There's a growing list of reasons for the Winnipeg Jets improvement this season.

Goaltending, power play, quickness, center and forward Blake Wheeler each have been prominent. The Jets also have a fourth-line center, Mathieu Perreault, who's averaging nearly a point per game this season.

The 29-year-old from Drummondville, Quebec, had two goals and an assist to help the Jets defeat the Vancouver Canucks 5-1 at Bell MTS Place on Monday. Perreault has 18 points (nine goals, nine assists) in 19 games, including 15 points (eight goals, seven assists) in 14 games since he returned from a lower-body injury that sidelined him for 12 games between Oct. 17 and Nov. 14.

"I'm just starting to feel great and we're winning, too, and winning cures everything, makes everybody feel better about themselves," Perreault said. "Every game is so much more fun, so maybe that has something to do with it."

The Jets (18-8-5) have Perreault playing on a line with , also a skilled player, and veteran Matt Hendricks, more in the category of a grinder.

Armia has 11 points (four goals, seven assists) in 28 games this season; Hendricks has seven points (three goals, four assists) in 24 games.

"I love his enthusiasm for the game," Hendricks said of Perreault. "He's a great worker. He's smart. He knows I'll keep it simple. I like playing with him because we kind of have the same type of game, but he has a high skill level. I'm going to get more offensive opportunities playing with him as well."

Perreault's enthusiasm is contagious, Jets coach Paul Maurice said.

The matter of Perreault's reduction in ice time, from more than 16 minutes per game in each of his first three seasons with Winnipeg to 12:32 this season, is offset by his production on the Jets' second power-play unit. He has seven power-play points (two goals, five assists) this season.

"You can play down a role or down minutes if you're on a hot power-play unit," Maurice said. "You can stay comfortable and confident [because] you're putting up points and feel like you're earning your pay."

Perreault, in his ninth NHL season, has 258 points (100 goals, 158 assists) in 445 games, but has never scored at the pace he's on this season. He's not big (5-foot-10, 188 pounds) but Maurice believes Perreault's skill, quickness and energy are perfect for 5-on-5 play.

"He's going to get out more times than not against players that aren't used to playing against a guy like Matty," Maurice said. "He's a really skilled guy. [It's] a handful as a fourth line. They don't have to be the fourth line. They can outscore the other lines but if you come off the bench fourth, most times that's the matchup we get at home, that's pretty effective for us."

It shows in the record. The Jets, with 41 points, began Tuesday three behind the first-place St. Louis Blues in the Central Division. Winnipeg is 10-0-1 in its past 11 games at Bell MTS Centre.

The fourth-line label often implies limits -- checking or killing -- but that doesn't seem to apply to Perreault.

"We don't see ourselves as a fourth line," he said. "We get the great matchup if they're going to match us up against other fourth lines and third D pairings. That's go time for me. As long as I get out there, get the minutes, I would never be [upset] about whoever I'm playing with. I like this team and I'm willing to play with anybody."

The Jets have enjoyed some measure of lineup stability this season, with 54 man-games lost to injury through games Monday.

But when changes are required, a sharp and hungry Perreault can be a seamless fit on Winnipeg's top lines.

Against the on Dec. 3, when rookie forward Kyle Connor was out with a lower- body injury, Perreault moved into his top-line spot with Scheifele and Wheeler and had a three- point game (one goal, two assists).

"He's a consistent player," Scheifele said. "You know what he's doing on the forecheck. You know what he's doing in the neutral zone. When I play with him, I get an easy feel. When [Perreault] is on my line, I know what he's doing.

"You see what he does. He battles for pucks. He's vocal, he's funny and a great guy to have in the room and on the ice, he has a lot of spunk in his game. He wants to win every battle. He wants to go to the net. He wants to get a tip goal. I think that's what you can respect him for, because he's a smaller guy who's willing to grind like that. That's what makes him so good."

Perreault said he is thrilled about his contribution, but it's one of many that has driven the Jets to their strong start.

"It starts with goaltending," he said. "[Connor] Hellebuyck's been amazing for us. And our D corps. Having [Tyler] Myers healthy, he didn't play at all last year, and he's playing big minutes for us. He's been a key player. And [Josh] Morrissey, he's growing into a great defenseman for us. And Jacob Trouba, the same. I think our D corps is as good as anybody else's.

"And our top two lines, well, you see what Scheifele and Wheeler are doing. We have the players. I think last year, we were just missing a little bit on all those guys I named, and they're giving us a little bit more, and it's all the difference."

Sportsnet.ca http://www.sportsnet.ca/hockey/nhl/jets-scheifele-wheeler-one-best-passers-game/

Jets’ Scheifele: Wheeler ‘one of the best passers in the game’

By Emily Sadler

Winnipeg Jets forward Mark Scheifele is known around the league for being one of hockey’s brightest students and biggest fans.

When he’s not playing hockey, he’s watching it in an effort to perfect his craft. While Sidney Crosby and Connor McDavid are, predictably, some of his favourite subjects to study, class is always in session when it comes to one of his own teammates, Blake Wheeler.

“He’s probably one of the best passers in the game right now,” Scheifele said during an appearance on at Noon on Tuesday. “He sees things that I don’t even see, and now it’s getting the instinct where I know if I pop out in a certain area, it’s on my stick.”

Wheeler’s unique vision and playmaking have him atop the Jets in assists (30) and total points (38) as Winnipeg’s red-hot season continues.

“Even if there’s only room for a puck to get through, it’s getting through and I’m like, I don’t know how he sees it,” said Scheifele, who ranks second in assists (21) and points (35) behind his this season. “I try to watch tape, I try to practise things in practice, to be the same passer to him, and I don’t know how he sees it. He’s a special player, and I really enjoy playing with him.

“He is a special player and not just in the passing aspect,” he continued. “He does everything so well, he gets in on the forecheck, he blocks shots, he can kill penalties, he’s awesome on the power play. He does everything for our team, and I think that’s who you want in a leader and he does a great job with that.”

TSN.ca https://www.tsn.ca/nhl/video/ranking-the-canadian-teams-are-the-jets-better-than-the- leafs~1283018 (VIDEO LINK)

Ranking the Canadian teams - Are the Jets better than the Leafs?

Leafs Lunch guest host and co-hosts Mike Weaver and Pierre LeBrun debate this week’s Power Rankings topic where they rank all the Canadian teams in order of best to worst.

TSN 1290 (AUDIO LINKS) https://www.tsn.ca/radio/winnipeg-1290/campbell-i-m-not-surprised-jets-bottom-six-is-producing- 1.942017

Campbell: I’m not surprised Jets bottom-six is producing

Tim Campbell of NHL.com joins the Afternoon Ride to discuss the Jets’ bottom-six depth, how Mathieu Perreault’s early season injury allowed him to assume a new role with the emergence of Kyle Connor, Josh Morrissey’s progress and intelligence, and why being “unnoticeable” is a good thing for Dmitry Kulikov https://www.tsn.ca/radio/winnipeg-1290/poulin-jets-as-deep-as-any-team-in-the-nhl-1.941986

Poulin: Jets as deep as any team in the NHL

TSN’s Dave Poulin joins the Afternoon Ride to talk about what GM Kevin Cheveldayoff should do as the team pushes for a playoff spot, how many goals he thinks the Copp/Lowry/Tanev line can produce, why backup goalie Steve Mason will have a critical role, how Blake Wheeler elevates the Jets, the waning shift length in the NHL, and the Jets’ crucial upcoming divisional games. https://www.tsn.ca/radio/winnipeg-1290/vigier-jets-injuries-on-defence-a-non-issue-1.941868

Vigier: Jets injuries on defence a non-issue

TSN 1290 hockey analyst JP Vigier breaks down the Winnipeg Jets’ 5-1 win over Vancouver Monday night and addresses the state of the team going forward. Topics include Mathieu Perreault’s strong play in a fourth line role, the growing confidence of the Lowry/Copp/Tanev line, and the state of the defence without Dustin Byfuglien. https://www.tsn.ca/radio/winnipeg-1290/kennedy-jets-have-chance-to-bank-points-against- divisional-opponents-1.941845

Kennedy: Jets have chance to bank points against divisional opponents

The Hockey News’ Ryan Kennedy takes a seat at the Donvito Roundtable with Kevin Olszewski to discuss headlines from around the NHL, including the importance of the next week for the Jets, the depth and dominance of the Lightning, injuries throughout the league, the “flailing” Senators, the Erik Karlsson saga, and who’s the best in a tight Metropolitan Division. https://www.tsn.ca/radio/winnipeg-1290/schilling-moose-began-to-gel-during-california-road-trip- 1.941844

Schilling: Moose began to gel during California road trip

Manitoba Moose defenceman Cam Schilling chats with Kevin Olszewski on a number of topics, including the team’s recent nine game winning streak, a ‘bittersweet’ week off prior to last weekend’s back-to-back games against Milwaukee, their upcoming eastern road trip, and his impressions of .