Stastny blows back into town with Hurricanes

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This article was published 21/11/2022 (1067 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

There were visits with old friends, including a small gathering at Blake Wheeler’s home Sunday evening. There were gifts exchanged, including a tasty bag of Nate Schmidt’s famous “Puppy Chow”, which is essentially a homemade trail mix.

And, oh yeah, there was a hockey game to be played as well, with Paul Stastny now in the visiting dressing room at Canada Life Centre on Monday night as his new team faced his old team for the first time this year.

“Always fun. Always good memories here. The best thing that ever happened in my hockey career was probably coming here the first time,” Stastny said, following the Carolina Hurricanes morning skate. “I will always be grateful for that.”

Stastny, 36, had two memorable stints with the Winnipeg Jets. The first came during the 2017-18 season, when he waived his no-trade clause from St. Louis for a blockbuster deadline deal which carried all the way through to the Western Conference Final.

With Winnipeg in salary cap trouble the following year, Stastny ultimately signed a lucrative three-year deal with the Vegas Golden Knights. But, after just one year, he was back in town, once again approving a deal to re-join the Jets. He skated here the past two seasons, including appearing in his 1,000th career game in the 2020-21 season.

All told, Stastny had 104 points (45 goals and 59 assists) in 169 combined regular-season and playoff games with Winnipeg.

After the Jets missed the playoffs last year, Stastny was pretty blunt in saying he was open to re-signing in Winnipeg, but wanted to see the direction of the team first. At his age, going somewhere that could compete for a championship was a priority.

So, is the fact he inked a one-year, US$1.5 million deal with the Hurricanes — after putting up 45 points (21 goals, 24 assists) in 71 games with the Jets last year — an indictment of what he thought of Winnipeg’s prospects?

“No, I wouldn’t look at it that way,” said Stastny.

“I always like a new challenge. For me, the kids being in school, that’s a big factor. I think Carolina’s been good for the kids for sure. Just a lot of activities, keeping them busy all the time. That’s the way I grew up, that’s the way my wife grew up. That’s obviously one factor.”

Stastny said he also wanted to get a taste of the Eastern Conference, after spending his entire career in the West playing for Colorado, St. Louis, Winnipeg and Vegas.

“It was down to like five, six teams. It was never down to two teams. Just trying to weigh the pros and the cons of a bunch of different teams. Obviously, being older, having older kids now, the family aspect of it. And just trying to have a chance to win,” said Stastny.

“I’ve said it before, there’s like 15 or 20 teams that can win the (Stanley) Cup. So, you never know, it doesn’t mean much. But I think you just look at the roster we have, when (Max) Pacioretty comes back we just get that much deeper. Obviously, that’s important. You change your role a bit, but sometimes you want to try that in your career. Just an opportunity to win. Who knows how that turns out.”

It’s been a bit of an on-ice struggle so far, as Stastny entered Monday’s game still looking for his first goal. He had just four assists through 17 games, and was even a healthy scratch earlier this month.

“It’s always a little different transition coming to a new team, but it’s a good spot here,” said Stastny.

“Crazy, every year you play, it seems like the league gets more and more equal. You know what I’m saying? There’s no more easy games. Every team seems to have the same record somehow. You lose one and you think, ‘Oh man, now we have to play these guys.’ But it kind of makes it fun. Day in and day out, you’ve got to be focused on the game ahead of you. The more consistent the better.”

Meanwhile, the Jets are more than holding their own under the new coaching staff led by veteran Rick Bowness, which doesn’t surprise Stastny.

“A lot of those guys had one coach their whole career. As soon as you get a new coach, everyone wakes up,” said Stastny.

“You get a different dynamic of things, you see things differently. A fresh start I think is what everyone needed, especially after, you know, it was tough in the bubble season, the pandemic season and it seems like everyone has a new lease on life and they’re playing great.”

Although much of the roster is the same (sans Stastny), one major change involved Bowness stripping his good buddy, Wheeler, of the Jets captaincy. The two men speak often, including after that development.

“I’m just always there if he needs someone to talk to,” said Stastny. “Never been in that situation but I think guys still respect the player that he is, whether he has a ‘C’ or not. That doesn’t change our view of him.”

Stastny will get the chance to show his former teammates around his new hockey home when the Jets come to Raleigh, N.C., in mid-March.

“It’s always good to catch up. He comes over and sees the family. Obviously we’ve become really close family friends over the last couple years. The kids were on FaceTime. It was good to see him,” Wheeler said Monday.

The feeling, of course, was mutual.

“We’ve always cherished our time here,” said Stastny. “We still have great friends, great memories here. It’s always had a special place in our heart.”

mike.mcintyre@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @mikemcintyrewpg