The Winnipeg Jets had a day off yesterday, but the players were back at it again today as they get ready for their next pre-season game. Arctic Ice Hockey has scoured the internet for any interesting tidbits that may entertain the hockey-hungry masses and this is what I came up with during my lunch break.
The first bit of news is that Scott Arniel and the coaching staff have trimmed the participants at this year’s training camp by 12, as they cut the following players:
Heading back to their Junior teams: forwards Kevin He, Jacob Julien, Connor Levis, Markus Loponen, & Kieron Walton
Sent to the Manitoba Moose: forwards Chaz Lucius, Henri Nikkanen, & Daniel Torgersson
Released from PTOs & heading for AHL: forward Ben King and defensemen Dylan Anhorn, Dawson Barteaux, & Ashton Sautner
Really no surprises in that group, other than possibly a player that I am high on…former 1st round pick Lucius. The oft-injured centerman is still not 100% from his most recent surgical procedure, so wasn’t a full participant at camp. According to the people in attendance for his on-ice work, the young American was looking very good and surprising goaltenders with his shot. With his injury history, it wasn’t surprising that management has opted to take a cautious approach to Chaz’s season and has given him the time to get into top condition before the Manitoba Moose training camp gets underway. I know that I have said it before, but I am going to repeat myself….I think the guy is going to have a break out season in the AHL and flirt with a point per game. Just needs to stay healthy for the full 72 game Moose schedule.
With those players out of the picture, the Winnipeg Jets have slimmed down to 23 forwards, 13 defensemen, & 5 goalies left at camp. With Ville Heinola on the shelf with an ankle infection, that leaves only 40 athletes left to compete for any available spots. There is still a lot of work to do to get down to the 22 or 23 players who will represent the NHL club when the regular season begins, the franchise has begun the process with 4 exhibition games left on the schedule.
Up next is a great tidbit of news, in that newly inked Cole Perfetti has rushed through his fitness training this morning so that he could participate in Winnipeg’s 11 am skate. The 22 yr old forward is a step behind his teammates after missing the first bit of camp, but he certainly will be motivated to perform well enough in the next two campaigns to make GM Kevin Cheveldayoff open the Jets’ wallet wide when it comes time for his next deal. Personally, I think a long-term contract would have been a great idea to save some salary cap in the future, but I am all for Fetti lighting it up this season & getting paid big bucks in the future.
After the announcers of the Oilers/Jets game advising that Winnipeg hadn’t started working on special teams, it seems the coaches have finally gotten around to it. The biggest news from this is the composition of the Jets’ top powerplay unit….Mark Scheifele, Kyle Connor, Gabriel Vilardi, Josh Morrissey, and Nikolaj Ehlers. At long last, the speedy Dane is getting the opportunity to play with Winnipeg’s top players when the Jets have the extra skater on the ice. Maybe the news that Arniel convinced Ehlers that he would be put in better situations & play a bigger role on the squad is coming to fruition? Now that Perfetti’s contract is on the books, I would suggest Chevy circles back to Fly’s agent to see if the speedy winger will agree to discuss an extension. I really don’t want to see Ehlers still un-extended by the trade deadline with pending unrestricted free agency on the horizon.
Wednesday’s game at the Canada Life Centre against the Edmonton Oilers will likely represent the first appearance of Winnipeg’s star players. The Jets will be anxious to get the first W in the win column, even though everyone knows that the team record is not that important in the pre-season. If that turns out to be incorrect, the Buffalo Sabres may be a team to watch this season since they are pouring in the goals during their early exhibition games. Anyways, we will have an idea of which Winnipeg Jets will don their jerseys in that game when the starting lineup hits the ice for a pre-game skate at 10 am tomorrow.
Keep enjoying the downtime Jets’ fans because it’s just 16 days until the regular season begins!!!
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