Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 08/11/2021 (579 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The Winnipeg Jets might have a full complement Tuesday night when the Central Division-leading St. Louis Blues make their first of two visits to the Manitoba capital in the 2021-22 NHL season.

Then again, they might not.

Appearances by forwards Mark Scheifele, Paul Stastny and Nikolaj Ehlers aren’t a certainty, although head coach Paul Maurice suggested it’s quite possible all three will get the green light.

“We’ll check on (Scheifele and Stastny). We won’t rule them out for (Tuesday),” he said, after Monday’s practice. “We’ll give them the morning skate and if they make good healing over 24 hours, if they continue that, it’s possible. We’ll see.”

Scheifele and Stastny were both banged up in the third period of Saturday’s 2-0 defeat to the New York Islanders. Ehlers, meanwhile, began practice in his usual spot beside Andrew Copp — while Jansen Harkins filled in for Stastny — but the speedy Dane left early.

“Something started to tighten up before the end of practice. We expect him to be fine,” said Maurice.

The line combinations during the skate downtown provided hints of the coach’s confidence the three will play.

Left undisturbed was the trio of centre Pierre-Luc Dubois with red-hot Kyle Connor and Evgeny Svechnikov. Riley Nash, a healthy scratch the last two games, assumed Scheifele’s spot up the middle, Adam Lowry remained on the left side and Blake Wheeler patrolled the right.

“(There’s) a higher expectation, maybe, that Mark will be back and I gave Adam more time on the left wing. I know he can play centre, he can go into the middle,” Maurice said. “If I knew Mark was out, I’d have put (Lowry) back in the middle. I might have even played with those top two lines a little bit and come up with a different configuration. So, I didn’t make a lot of changes because I’m hopeful …I didn’t play with the lines too, too much.

“But I might, if we got here (Tuesday) morning and neither (Scheifele and Stastny can play), you’ll see a different setup.”

jason.bell@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @WFPJasonBell