Enlarge Image

Winnipeg Jet Eric Fehr (17) has had shoulder problems to overcome, granted, but he's contributed only one point this season. At this point, head coach Claude Noel sees no reason to give him more ice time. (GERRY BROOME / THE ASSOCIATED PRESS)

Enlarge Image

Fehr hams it up in practice Monday with teammate Derek Meech. (JOE BRYKSA / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS)

If you see a faint object over Winnipeg Jets forward Eric Fehr's head these days, it could be a question mark starting to take form.

The former Washington Capital joined the Jets while in sick bay and didn't find his way onto a roster until Nov. 19 against Philadelphia. And while the Jets knew it would take the Winkler product time to get back to form, six weeks later, the team is still waiting.

The countdown is underway.

"I'm waiting for him to play a little better," head coach Claude Noel said, when asked Monday what hes seen from Fehr since his inclusion in the Jets' lineup back in November. The 26-year-old missed the start of the season due to off-season shoulder surgery to fix an injury suffered when he was with the Washington Capitals last winter.

"If he plays better, then he'll get more minutes," Noel continued. "But he's still dealing with the injury; it still bothers him, it bothers him somewhat mentally. I think hes got to deal with that. That's something hes got to overcome."

Winnipeg traded a fourth-round draft pick to bring Fehr back to his home province in July and the assumption was that when the former Brandon Wheat King sniper got healthy, Fehr, who had 46 goals and 93 points in 230 games with the Capitals, would add some scoring depth on the back half of the forward group.

With his $2.2-million contract set to expire, it was a low-risk, high-reward gamble by the organization: If Fehr lived up to the promise he showed when the Capitals drafted him in the first round (18th overall, 2003), the Jets get their secondary offensive punch. If he doesn't produce, Winnipeg holds the cards at the end of the year on a player who becomes a restricted free agent this summer.

Fourteen games into his Jets career (he didn't dress for five games in December), the first scenario has materialized. With just one assist, Fehr remains a fourth-line player these days, averaging just 12 shifts and 8:30 minutes of ice time per game.

"He wants to play more -- I have no problem with that," Noel said. "Play better, youll play more. It's that simple. I've spoken to him about that. He's still cautious a bit, I see it everywhere. Well, you'll have to figure that out somewhere."

Fehr declined to speak with the media Monday, a curious move considering his usual ease in front of the tape recorders and cameras. Disappearing in that fashion suggests the pressure is building on the 6-foot-4, 212-pound winger and he can feel the weight of the new expectation placed on him now that he's healthy again.

Remember: The Jets asked everyone to be patient with Fehr, reminding people that he didn't have a training camp and that he was coming off a serious shoulder injury.

Is six weeks enough time? For Noel, that sounds about right.

"Frustrating? For me? How could it be frustrating? We're winning," he said. "It's not frustrating for me. It's his career, not mine. Players have to figure it out. If you want to play more, then play."

Fehr hasnt scored since March 9, 2011 (a 24-game drought), and hasnt done anything to warrant a promotion up the depth chart. A physical role isn't really in his arsenal and more importantly, he's not creating much for himself offensively, making Noel's decision quite easy as he contemplates the forward lines on the drive to the rink each morning.

Fehr wasn't playing top-line minutes in Washington (12:21 over the last two seasons), but he still managed to score 31 goals in 121 games. Noel has yet to see that spark this year.

"He gives me no reason to move him off that slot (the fourth line)," the coach said.

"He had a legitimate injury, (and) it's not easy to overcome these things, and you don't want to be out again for another six months or whatever. Thats something hes got to work out... he has to figure it out."

If Fehr doesnt put it together soon, one gets the sense -- at least from the way Noel was talking Monday -- that he will be skating with the Jets on borrowed time.

adam.wazny@freepress.mb.ca

Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition January 3, 2012 B6