Blake Wheeler’s on a roll

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This article was published 24/10/2015 (3635 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Another game, another point for Blake Wheeler.

It’s become something of a certainty — Wheeler’s name on the scoresheet in some capacity on a nightly basis. A goal here, an assist there and a dash of multi-point outings just for good measure, Wheeler’s impact for the Winnipeg Jets is impossible not to notice, as is his torrid start to the 2015-16 National Hockey League season.

While some might postulate a big change in Wheeler’s game, or perhaps his demeanour or even his pre-game meal, it’s been anything but for the veteran right-winger.

“It’s really just been pretty simple,” Wheeler said after tying a franchise record for consecutive games with a point to start the season, at seven.

“Just staying on it, all game. There’s going to be nights where the puck seems to find you all night, where you get chance after chance. And then there’s going to be nights like tonight, where you only get one or two chances and you got to make them count.”

Wheeler’s record matches that of Donald Audette, who recorded 14 points in the first seven games of the 2000-01 season when the team was in Atlanta.

Wheeler recorded 17 points in the final 18 games of the season last year and now has 26 points in 25 games dating to March 1.

When head coach Paul Maurice talks about Wheeler’s game, he looks back to last season, one he feels Wheeler endured a learning experience that ultimately changed his game and bosted his confidence.

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“We can go back to last year, for long stretches of it, he’s hit that maturity level where he can come to the rink and have a real strong night,” Maurice said. “I think he’s just a real, mature, high-end pro now. He takes care of his body, he just plays that way every single night.

“I think there’s trust in his game, where he can play the game one way, hard, physical, simple, fast and not have to worry about doing all things every shift.

“When you get a guy that’s just that darn fast, he is so explosive out of the hole — his goal tonight, there’s not too many guys in the league that can cover that much ice in that short a period of time.”

scott.billeck@freepress.mb.ca

Scott Billeck
Reporter

Scott Billeck is a general assignment reporter for the Free Press. A Creative Communications graduate from Red River College, Scott has more than a decade’s worth of experience covering hockey, football and global pandemics. He joined the Free Press in 2024.  Read more about Scott.

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