Jets blue line awfully crowded

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This article was published 05/12/2023 (671 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

During a stretch that’s seen the Winnipeg Jets answer many of the challenges they’ve faced, one question still remains: who is the team’s sixth defenceman?

Declan Chisholm, Logan Stanley and Nate Schmidt have each drawn into the lineup in the last week and each brings something different to the table. Capitalizing on their opportunities to play will be key to whoever takes over a full-time role.

Chisholm, the smooth-skating 23-year-old, has appeared in the last two contests after returning from a conditioning stint with the Manitoba Moose in the American Hockey League, registering a point in his season-debut and largely meeting expectations, according to head coach Rick Bowness.

“He’s doing what we thought he was capable of doing. He’s a great skater and he has excellent puck skills and he moves it well — that’s what we’re seeing,” Bowness said of the fourth-year pro, following Tuesday’s optional skate at the Hockey For All Centre. “It’s tough to throw him into these games, especially a game like Carolina last night, and Colorado, we know how good they are, so, are we pleased with what we’ve seen in the two games? Yes.”

Another wrinkle was added to the fold on Monday night when Bowness iced seven defencemen and 11 forwards against the Carolina Hurricanes, in a 2-1 victory, but opted to go with Stanley over Schmidt, who sat in the press box for the second consecutive game.

Stanley logged 12:58 of ice time, more than Chisholm (10:08) and one second more than regular blue-liner Dylan Samberg (12:57).

“We wanted to get Logan into a game and Chisholm had played well the game before, and we know who our top five are, so that’s why we did it — to get Logan into the game and to give Chizzy another chance,” Bowness said, adding, “Are we going to do that on a regular basis? No.”

The Jets (14-8-2) hit the road for a four-game trip to the southwest that begins in Colorado against the Avalanche on Thursday (8 pm. CT) before a California swing with stops in Anaheim, San Jose and Los Angeles. While Bowness has yet to confirm who will suit up on Thursday, he said the situation would remain fluid for the time being.

“At this time, it is a game-to-game (decision). We’re not going to let Nate Schmidt, our veteran, sit out very long either. That’s not fair to him. Listen, with eight defencemen, you want them all playing — it’s a juggling act, no question — but we’ll always go on the ice with the best lineup that we feel gives us the chance to win that night,” he said.

Chisholm is the youngest of the trio and has the least experience, having played just four career NHL games, but is perhaps the most talented of the bunch with his strong two-way ability. More importantly, he is brimming with confidence these days.

“Pretty well honestly,” Chisholm gave as a self-assessment of his first two games. “I felt like I was pretty poised with the puck and I wasn’t panicking too much and if I saw a play, I was trying to make a quick, nice, clean play every time, and I felt like I was pretty confident too.

“I definitely do feel a more calm sense of being on the ice and everything,” he continued. “Not playing games, you kind of feel like you just have to work as hard as you can in practice and just be super patient but playing in games, it’s a whole different mentality now. Now I can look forward to what I’m going to do next game if I’m in.

“I got the experience in the last two games so I think it’s a huge step in the right direction for my confidence and everything on the ice.”

Meanwhile, Stanley admits it’s been tough to keep his confidence high. The sixth-year pro, who’s revered for his 6-7 frame, has played in just four contests this year. Monday night marked 18 days since his last chance at game action.

“Definitely nice playing a game. It sucks that I’ve been watching,” Stanley said. “I think as a competitor you always want to play, right? So it was great to get back in last night and help the team get a win.”

Life as a bubble player is nothing new to Stanley. He played a career-high 58 games in 2021-22 and that took a dive to 19 appearances last season as he missed 40 games due to injury and was scratched on 22 occasions. With a competitive blue line this year, Stanley has found himself fighting for scraps.

But, if nothing else, the 25-year-old has matured when it comes to handling these situations.

“At the start, you think, ‘I gotta do everything (in) one game to show them what (I) can do,’ but the best thing you can do is be simple, reliable and earn the coach’s trust to get into another game. It’s not trying to do too much, just keep it simple and then let your confidence grow over, hopefully, a couple of games,” he said.

“(But) it’s tough. If you play one or two and sit for two weeks, you kind of lose it again and then get it back so it’s not an easy thing to do.”

Things could grow even hairier on the backend when Ville Heinola is ready for game action. The Finn was seen skating for the first time since undergoing surgery to repair a fractured ankle he suffered in a preseason game on Oct. 5.

Heinola took a twirl before the rest of his teammates hit the ice, but Bowness said there’s reason for fans to get excited about the promising blue-liner just yet, given he’s just a little over nine weeks into a two-to-three-month recovery.

“He’s still a ways away,” Bowness said. “Again, it’s day-to-day to see how he feels, how much work that he can put in.”

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Still on the injury front, Bowness said he’s optimistic about Vladislav Namestikov’s chances of suiting up on the club’s upcoming four-game road trip.

The versatile forward sustained a lower-body injury in the third period of last week’s tilt against the Edmonton Oilers after falling to the ice while tangled with defenceman Darnell Nurse.

Namestikov has missed the last two games and is day-to-day.

“We’re hoping that he does play on this road trip,” Bowness said. “Probably doubtful for Thursday but he’s got a lot of heart and played last year, for a month, with a broken toe — and he’ll play with a lot of pain — so don’t rule out Thursday but we’re certainly hoping at some point he plays this road trip.”

jfreysam@freepress.mb.ca

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