McDavid centre of attention tonight

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 13/02/2016 (3553 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

It was Connor Hellebuyck creating all the buzz Friday when news broke the 22-year-old would be heading back to the Manitoba Moose to accommodate Ondrej Pavelec’s return to the Winnipeg Jets roster.

But tonight, when the Jets take on the Edmonton Oilers at Rexall Place, all eyes will be on another Connor; Connor McDavid, the Oilers young centreman and the NHL’s No. 1 overall pick in last summer’s draft.

It’s not often a coach gushes over an opposing player. But then again, McDavid is far from ordinary, a rare generational talent that comes around even less often than praise from another coach, something Paul Maurice delivered plenty of Friday when asked about the young superstar.

“You’re going to ask me, if I’m fortunate enough to be in this league a long time, every time we play Edmonton, ‘how do you stop this guy’ and I’m not sure there’s an easy answer to that just yet,” said the Jets coach.

McDavid, 19, took the league by storm in October, averaging a sliver under a point per contest through his first 12 games before an awkward collision with the end boards resulted in a broken collarbone and a seat in the pressbox for more than three months. Since his return in early February, McDavid has 12 points in six games, including one on every goal in a 5-2 win over Toronto Thursday.

“Talk about the complete package,” said Maurice. “He’s got that blinding speed with those hands. He could play for zero (dollars), not get a dime for salary, if he just got paid on the number of reruns on the highlights of his, he would make a whole lot more money.”

That respect will surely be thrown out the window tonight.

Winnipeg Free Press | Newsletter

The Warm-Up

Winnipeg Jets Game Days

On Winnipeg Jets game days, hockey writers Mike McIntyre and Ken Wiebe send news, notes and quotes from the morning skate, as well as injury updates and lineup decisions. Arrives a few hours prior to puck drop.

Sign up for The Warm-Up

Sign Up

I agree to the Terms and Conditions, Cookie and Privacy Policies, and CASL agreement.

— A TOUGH OPPONENT: A Jets locker-room Thursday night following a 6-2 loss to the Boston Bruins had a number of players admitting they just couldn’t match the effort put forth by the Bruins late in the game. Winnipeg, down 3-2 after the first period, was unable to score in the final 40 minutes and was outshot 14-6 in a third period that saw Boston add three goals. Asked how he interpreted the comments following a game the Jets desperately needed, Maurice was quick — not to defend his guys, but to praise Boston.

“That was the best period of hockey a team has played against us this year in terms of being on the puck and on the sticks,” he said. “There’s always places that you can get better… sometimes the other team deserves to win.”

— SWITCHING IT UP: Asked why defenceman Mark Stuart was given a season-low 10 minutes and 18 seconds of ice time Thursday, with no time logged on his regular spot with the PK unit, Maurice said it was just a matter of switching things up.

The move seems to have worked as the Jets shut down Boston’s league-leading power-play units on all three of their chances, making it the first time in five games the Jets didn’t give up a power-play goal.

jeff.hamilton@freepress.mb.ca twitter: @jeffkhamilton

Jeff Hamilton
Multimedia producer

Jeff Hamilton is a sports and investigative reporter. Jeff joined the Free Press newsroom in April 2015, and has been covering the local sports scene since graduating from Carleton University’s journalism program in 2012. Read more about Jeff.

Every piece of reporting Jeff produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print — part of the Free Press‘s tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press’s history and mandate, and learn how our newsroom operates.