Jets all-stars heap praise on each other, teammates

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This article was published 03/01/2019 (2438 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

They’ve been the undisputed leaders of the Winnipeg Jets, and two of the biggest reasons why the team is in the top spot in the Central Division.

So it came as little surprise late Wednesday when captain Blake Wheeler and his linemate, Mark Scheifele, the Jets’ No. 1 centre, were selected to compete in the 2019 NHL all-star game in San Jose.

“Sometimes, and it’s a function of requirements by each of these teams in this new structure, it may not be the two drivers off your team, sometimes we’ve had one guy selected. But those are the right two guys here, for the year that we’ve had,” Jets head coach Paul Maurice said after Thursday’s practice.

“I’m glad they get an opportunity to go together. I think it’s great for Mark, he’s earned it. Mark has been a powerful man this year and had an incredible month of December.”

Scheifele, who will play in his first all-star game, has been named an NHL star of the week three times this season, including twice in December. Last month, he collected 20 points in 15 games, including a stretch of five games between Dec. 11-16 where he had five goals and nine assists.

“Even better to be going with Blake, so I’m definitely a happy man,” said Scheifele. “It’s still a couple weeks away. We got to focus on our task at hand… right now it’s focusing on getting wins with the Jets.”

Wheeler is on pace to reach a career high in points. He currently leads the Jets with 50, including 44 assists — third best in the NHL. It’s the second straight all-star nod for the winger, who, along with goaltender Connor Hellebuyck, represented Winnipeg last season.

At first Wheeler downplayed the acknowledgment, directing praise to the entire team, all of whom he credits for why the Jets are 25-12-2 near the midway mark of the season. But asked why he wouldn’t prefer to rest rather than travel to play on the few days players get time off in a season, he smiled and began to talk about how much his family enjoyed the event last year.

“My oldest (kid), Louie, he asked me about it at the beginning of the season and I said, ‘it doesn’t happen every year,’” Wheeler said. “For me, my wife Sam and I get to share these experiences with our kids. Ultimately, when they look back on my career these are the memories they’re going to have, so it’s pretty cool to share with them.”

“Scheif and I are getting the recognition for being on a really good team. We get a lot of ice time. We’re put in positions to succeed because we’ve got a group of guys that do the right things every day,” he said.

Maurice could also be selected to coach in the all-star game for the Central Division, which will depend on where the Jets are in the standings once coaches are selected.

“I guarantee you one thing: nobody in the San Jose or any NHL city is buying a ticket because they might have a chance to watch Paul Maurice coach. That’s a fact,” the coach quipped

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The Jets’ power play has struggled of late, earning just one goal in its last 14 attempts over a stretch of six games. Even with the recent drought, Winnipeg still has the second-best PP unit in the NHL, with a 28.1 per cent success rate, behind only the Tampa Bay Lightning (29.2).

Still, the Jets used much of Thursday’s practice to work on man-advantage play. They’ll certainly have their hands full on Friday, when they travel to Pittsburgh to play the Penguins, who, at 83.9 per cent, have one of the league’s top penalty kills.

“We just have to know what we do best and not get away from it, not try to reinvent the wheel,” Jets centre Mark Scheifele said. “We know it’s worked for all of last year and a good part of this year, so we just have to focus on doing what we know best and sticking to it.”

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Manitoba Moose forward Mason Appleton has been selected to participate in the 2019 American Hockey League all-star game in Springfield, Mass., making it the second time in as many years he has been chosen to play in the league’s annual player showcase.

Appleton is having another solid year of professional hockey, following up his award-winning AHL campaign from last season, when he was named the league’s top rookie after leading the Moose with 66 points (22G, 44A) in 76 games. The 22-year-old has 18 points in 19 games for the Moose this season, with his success leading to a promotion to the Jets, where he has two points in 14 games.

The all-star challenge will be on Jan. 28 (6 p.m. CT) — which is preceded by a skills competition the day before — and will include four teams that will participate in a 3-on-3, round-robin tournament, featuring six games of 10 minutes each. The two teams with the best records at the end of the round robin will face off for the championship in a six-minute 3-on-3 game.

jeff.hamilton@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @jeffkhamilton