Jets recharge and get ready

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This article was published 08/01/2022 (1345 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

If you told Nate Schmidt that he would have six days between games in the NHL, the Winnipeg Jets defenceman said that would likely mean jetting off to a beach somewhere.

That’s because under normal circumstances, that long of a stretch would usually mean his team was on a holiday break, creating the rare opportunity in-season for players to get away from the rink. But these aren’t normal times, and Schmidt isn’t sporting anything Tommy Bahama.

Instead, with COVID-19 continuing to wreak havoc in Canada and around the world, as cases climb higher each day, the Jets have taken steps to postpone games in hopes that health protocols eventually ease. As it currently stands, attendance at Canada Life Centre has been capped at 250 people until Feb. 1.

That kind of limit on attendance is a significant hit to the bottom line when it comes to gate revenue, so home games have been postponed to a later date when more people might be allowed to attend. That included Saturday’s tilt against the Seattle Kraken, as well as Monday against the Minnesota Wild.

The result is almost a week off between games, with practices scheduled to fill in the gap. Along with other forms of entertainment.

“It’s kind of got that training camp feel to it,” Schmidt said following Saturday’s workout.

“But at the same time, I’m really looking forward to catching up on some TV shows. The Harry Potter reunion on HBO, I’m excited for that. I watched half of it last night and I’m going to watch the next half tonight. The Book of a Boba Fett episode 2 is coming out. I’m going to try to do some of these things, maybe getting a new book. We bought a house here. So, going over some house stuff.”

He added: “You can kind of unplug for a minute and recharge yourself and get yourself back ready after for what seems like it’s going to be a long road trips for us in the foreseeable future.”

The Jets, who are 16-12-5, one point shy of the Edmonton Oilers for the second wild-card spot in the Western Conference, will play their next game in Detroit against the Red Wings Thursday night. After that, with back-to-back home games against the Ottawa Senators and Oilers on Jan. 15 and 16 also postponed, Winnipeg heads out on a four-game road trip, beginning in Washington Jan. 18.

Jets forward Andrew Copp said it can be time used to sharpen your skills on the ice, while also taking care of your body off it. Copp noted it was also a chance to get back into a proper sleep pattern. The Jets arrived home from Denver following a 7-1 shellacking against the Avalanche in the early hours Friday and Copp said his body clock was still out of whack.

“When you go to sleep at 4 a.m. it’s really hard to go to sleep at 10 p.m. the next night. I think a lot of guys were a little weary this morning, maybe not getting the proper sleep the last two nights,” Copp said. “We have five or six more days until our next game. That’s something you have to dial in. Part of that is eating the right things at the right time. Our guys are pretty good about that throughout the season, we have to be, but it’s important to stay with that and not think ‘we have a game in a week so I can slack off in not just that area, but any area.”

Ever since Dave Lowry took over for Paul Maurice as the Jets head coach, practices have increased in time length. What used to be 40 to 45 minute workouts now often eclipse the hour mark. That trend continued on Saturday and is likely to remain in place over the next while, with days off sprinkled in.

Rest will also be key, especially for defenceman Dylan DeMelo and forward Jansen Harkins, both of whom remain in COVID protocol. Forward Paul Stastny and defenceman Logan Stanley were also absent from practice Saturday, each owing to a nagging lower-body injury.

“We’re going to incorporate drills that are game like, they’ll be competitive, and they’ll be all about getting in and around the net. How can we score goals but also how can we defend in our end as well?” Lowry said.

“One of the benefits and one of the bonuses that you have at this time of year is you have the opportunity to let some of the bumps and bruises heal. When you get the games stacked up like we’re going to have, you’re not going to have those days so then it all becomes about managing the schedule, managing your practice time.

“We’ll take full advantage of the opportunity that we have to practice right now, knowing that after the Detroit game we’ll have a couple more days and then the games are going to start stacking up and then it’s going to be play. And then we’ll spend and do a lot of teaching through video.”

jeff.hamilton@freepress.mb.ca

twitter: @jeffkhamilton