Winnipeg Free Press https://www.winnipegfreepress.com/sports/hockey/jets/morrissey-adds-some-o-zone-flash-to- shutdown-role-on-blue-line-464989843.html?k=9UrvAj Morrissey adds some O-zone flash to shutdown role on blue line By: Jason Bell Josh Morrissey is showing some of the offensive skills that he's had tucked away until recently. With defencemen Dustin Byfuglien and Toby Enstrom on the shelf with injuries, the 22-year-old blue-liner is pushing up the ice with more regularity, slipping into the slot and releasing more shots than he has since breaking into the NHL late in the 2015-16 campaign. He fired a goal and added an assist Sunday in Winnipeg's 4-0 shutout of the St. Louis Blues — the fifth and sixth points he's accumulated in December, his most productive month since securing a regular spot on the Jets' D. One of his former junior coaches maintains it was really just a matter of time. "You could see early on he was a gifted player offensively, there was no denying it," says Dave Manson, a longtime assistant coach with the Prince Albert Raiders. "He could see the ice and make plays like very few guys could do. He always had that side of his game. "We really pushed him to learn how to defend, because if you can do that you earn a coach's trust to use you in every situation. Once he realized that at the pro level — proper stick positioning, body positioning, plus the fact Josh is super-competitive — that's the reason he's earning more ice time in Winnipeg." Morrissey has carved out a niche as a shutdown specialist in 117 career NHL games, but he's taking full advantage of an opportunity to showcase abilities that, until late November, have only occasionally been on display. Morrissey now has five goals and eight assists in 34 games, third on the Jets blue line behind Tyler Myers (5G, 11A) and Byfuglien (0G, 15A). He's flashing the offensive flair that made him one of the most dominant junior defencemen in Canada and captured the attention of the Winnipeg's scouting staff during the 2012-13 Western Hockey League season. Jets head coach Paul Maurice maintains it was only a matter of time before Morrissey began producing more points. Most impressive, he says, is the former Raider all-star rearguard's willingness to play a more conservative, defensive style — with tremendous success — since he turned pro. Morrissey's comfort level and effectiveness playing against some of the best forward units in the league automatically translates to increased minutes on the ice and, over time, an expanded role on special teams, he says. "We've got a player we know has offensive skill and he takes his (defensive) role first. Because of the quality of his play, he plays against the other teams' best in a shutdown role every night. So, he's not cheating... or jumping into holes to try to get some numbers that would get him noticed more as an offensive player. We know it's there. He's looking for it a bit more, which we're fine with," says Maurice, in his 20th season as an NHL head coach and fifth in Winnipeg. "The next stage for him will be running on the back end on one of the power plays. That will be where his numbers will increase drastically. We don't want to add four or five more minutes to a player's game when we love the game he's playing, but he's going to force (himself) into that position by his play." The Jets selected Morrissey with their first-round pick (13th overall) in the 2013 NHL Draft after the six-foot,195-pound Calgarian registered 15 goals and 47 points in his draft year with the Raiders. The following season (2013-14), he boosted those totals big-time, firing 28 goals and adding 45 assists in just 59 games. Perhaps most remarkably, he was called up by the Jets’ then-American Hockey League affiliate, the St. John’s IceCaps, and played eight regular-season contests and participated in 20 playoff games, recording nine points. Morrissey returned for a final year of junior in 2014-15, finally turning pro with the Manitoba Moose the following season and picking up three goals and 22 points in 57 games. He also dressed for one NHL game that year when the Jets battled the Montreal Canadiens. Last season, he collected 20 points in his rookie year with Winnipeg but he made his mark as a consistently responsible defender. "He's grooming himself into becoming one of those No.1 type of defencemen," says captain Blake Wheeler. "How well he plays defensively is just tremendous. When you draft a guy like that, I don't think that's what they expected, necessarily. I remember when he came into camp early on, when he was in junior, a power-play guy, a little guy, a quick guy, makes nice plays. I certainly never saw that coming, the level of defence he can play. "He's gone against the best players in the world and taken them out of games sometimes." Paired up with Jacob Trouba, a sound defensive effort remains his top objective — particularly now with Byfuglien and Enstrom sidelined for extended time. He leads the team's defence with a plus-seven rating and is averaging 19:29 minutes of ice time per game, although he's worked an average of two additional minutes over his last five outings. "With guys out of the lineup, everybody has got to step up and take on a little bit of those roles," Morrissey says. "For me, I’m just trying to get better every single day and get better to help this team win. Our whole back end has stepped up with those guys out. If he was a well-kept secret in the Manitoba capital before, word around the NHL is certainly leaking out now, although Morrissey is taking all the compliments in stride. "It’s always really nice to hear people say nice things about your game... obviously, I really appreciate that. But I’m just here to try and help the team win every single day and try to get better every single day and be the best pro I can. That’s all I try to do every day," he says. Manson, an NHL defenceman for 16 years with seven different clubs including the Jets 1.0 (1993-96), takes great pride in playing a role in Morrissey's rapid development and skyrocketing value to the Winnipeg organization. "I'm not surprised the success he's having in pro," says Manson, who still speaks with a soft, raspy voice — the result of a throat injury sustained 25 years ago during a fight with Sergio Momesso of the Vancouver Canucks. "He was a great player for us and helped change the culture in Prince Albert. We're proud of that, obviously. "To see him succeed is terrific, and we know how much (the Jets) think of him. He's respectful and polite and he's very professional. He's going to be a very good player for a long time because of his competitiveness and his character." Morrissey is in the final year of an entry-level deal that pays him US$832,500 this season. He’s a restricted free agent and will be in line for a hefty pay hike. https://www.winnipegfreepress.com/sports/hockey/jets/its-jets-firepower-up-against-preds- extinguisher-in-nashville-464993613.html It's Jets' firepower up against Preds' extinguisher in Nashville By: Jason Bell It's the Central's most explosive squad pitted against the division's defensive specialists. Something's gotta give. The Winnipeg Jets take on the Nashville Predators Tuesday night at Bridgestone Arena, the second meeting of the NHL season between the divisional rivals. Game time is 7 p.m. (TSN 3, TSN 1290). Winnipeg (19-10-5) has ripped more goals (112) than any other Central Division team thus far in the 2017-18 season and is the only club in the league with three players who have at least 15 goals prior to Monday night's slate of games. Second-year sniper Patrik Laine scored his team-leading 16th — and his NHL-best 10th power- play tally — while top-line centre Mark Scheifele's nifty deflection was his 15th, as the Jets blanked the visiting St. Louis Blues 4-0 Sunday. Laine's linemate, Nikolaj Ehlers, also has 15 goals. The Predators, meanwhile, are a stingy bunch, giving up just 85 goals to this point, the fewest of any team in the division. It's been 154 minutes and 59 seconds since the squad's Finnish-born goaltending tandem of Pekka Rinne and Juuse Saros allowed a puck to get past them. In the Preds' last outing, Rinne stopped 32 shots for his third shutout of the season in a 2-0 win over the Calgary Flames. Two nights earlier, Saros stopped all 46 shots he faced in a 4-0 victory over the Edmonton Oilers. Nashville (21-7-4), which also won 7-1 in Vancouver last week, is 6-0-1 this month, 11-1-2 in the past 14 games — the lone regulation loss coming against the Canucks Nov. 30 — and 16-2-2 over its previous 20 contests. The Preds defeated the visiting Jets 5-3 Nov. 20. ••• After 48 shots and nothing to show for them Saturday in St.