Cavalry arrives in the nick of time

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This article was published 17/03/2015 (4150 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

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The range may be from mere consternation to an actual migraine on the question of injuries and whether there is any greater source of anxiety for fans, coaches, managers and owners.

In the case of the Winnipeg Jets, it’s been another stretch of days for pain relievers. For the players, too, because most injuries actually hurt.

The team, in an intense scramble for a Stanley Cup playoff berth with just 13 games to go, likely went from splitting headache to just minor throbbing Monday when it was revealed big-minutes defencemen Dustin Byfuglien and Tyler Myers may well join the lineup for tonight’s contest at the MTS Centre against the San Jose Sharks.

The Jets, at 80 points in 69 games, were either barely above or below the playoff line depending on the outcome of a West Coast game Monday night. (The L.A. Kings — one point behind the Jets in the race for the second wild-card spot — were hosting the lowly Arizona Coyotes.)

Myers went down last Thursday after crashing into the goalpost and boards in a game against the Florida Panthers. He missed Saturday’s trip-ending 2-1 win in Tampa.

Byfuglien’s upper-body problem occurred March 4 vs. Ottawa and he missed all four road games last week.

Both were on the ice and in regular practice garb on Monday at the MTS Iceplex.

Myers even declared himself ready to go tonight.

“A lot better,” he said. “Should be good to go, no problem tomorrow. We had a good-case scenario and a bad-case scenario and it ended up being the best that we could have had.”

Jets coach Paul Maurice, as he almost always does, hedged his bets on both men but gave no negative hints.

“Byfuglien and Myers skated today,” the coach said. “We’ll see how they’re doing tomorrow before we make any decisions. It’s a possibility they could be available for us tomorrow night.”

Byfuglien had skated for a few days prior to Monday’s practice. He hinted his injury wasn’t just one play in the Ottawa game.

‘Today it was nice to come back to see the boys. I kind of missed them. It got a little lonely, boring around here without them’

— Dustin Byfuglien

“It definitely wasn’t… didn’t happen the way I thought it would happen,” he said Monday. “It wasn’t the start of it. It was just kind of the end of it. It finally went, and it’s getting better getting back into the game.

“Today it was nice to come back to see the boys. I kind of missed them. It got a little lonely, boring around here without them.”

Putting Byfuglien, averaging 22 minutes 45 seconds per game of ice time, and Myers, averaging 24:34, back into a stretch-run game certainly bolsters the Jets’ depth.

The fact Myers’ regular partner, Toby Enstrom, is no worse for wear after being plastered into the glass and boards from behind during Saturday’s game is also a bonus.

Enstrom was away from practice — just maintenance — on Monday but will be ready tonight, Maurice said.

The line on good injury news ends there.

On the other side of it, No. 1 centre Byran Little remains out. He’s also missed four games and though he skated with injured parties on Monday, is unlikely for tonight. Maurice didn’t rule Little out for this entire week, though.

And one more name goes on the injured list. Defenceman Paul Postma, who came back into the lineup and played 23:01 on Saturday, is now out several weeks with a lower-body issue.

“It’s significant, lower body,” Maurice said. “We’ll have a better understanding over the next three or four days on the length of time. It’s weeks, not days. Even on the positive end of it, if it’s good news it’s going to be at least a couple weeks.”

As far as other long-term wounded players go, neither defenceman Ben Chiarot nor point producer Mathieu Perreault are closer than their projected early April returns.

“As planned,” Maurice said. “Nobody’s coming back early yet from that group.”

The wild swings of the Jets’ injury picture, as well as within their games and their results, have tested mental resolve in the last 10 days, veteran defenceman Mark Stuart said.

“Ups and downs for sure,” Stuart said. “We wanted to end on a good note and we did that. That game in Tampa just showed a lot of resiliency.”

tim.campbell@freepress.mb.ca

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