Monahan a perfect fit for Jets Centre’s commitment to excellence everything team wanted and needed By: Ken Wiebe Posted: 5:15 PM CDT Monday, Apr. 8, 2024

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This article was published 08/04/2024 (829 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

NASHVILLE — Rick Bowness isn’t someone prone to exaggeration.

When the Winnipeg Jets head coach was recently asked about the arrival of Sean Monahan, he could hardly contain his enthusiasm.

“Somehow, he’s a perfect fit,” said Bowness, whose team continues a four-game road trip Tuesday against the Nashville Predators. “Good on faceoffs, good on the penalty kill, he’s smart, he’s reliable, he creates offence. His personality, he just fits right in. He’s no maintenance. He’s got great character, great leadership. Everything we heard about him is true and magnified.

“He’s been exactly what we needed and exactly what we wanted.”

The pre-emptive strike made by Jets general manager Kevin Cheveldayoff on Feb. 2 will go down as one of the best he’s made — and that’s saying something when you consider the run he’s been on the past few years.

Was the 2024 first-rounder (and a conditional 2027 third-round pick if Winnipeg wins the Stanley Cup) a steep price to pay the Montreal Canadiens for a potential rental player?

No doubt it’s significant, especially for a team that’s deeply rooted in the draft, develop and retain model, but it’s tough to argue Monahan wasn’t worth it.

As the Jets prepare for the final five games of the regular season in a tight battle for second spot in the Central Division, Monahan’s impact is undeniable, as the 11 goals and 21 points in 29 games on the stat line suggest. That impact also stretches well beyond the numbers, as Monahan has provided a presence on the second scoring line while contributing in virtually every area.

“It’s been great having him,” said Jets forward Morgan Barron. “He’s battled through some really tough injuries and he’s had to evolve his game a little bit. But he’s done it so successfully. The biggest thing I noticed about his impact is that he’s so good in the (faceoff) dot. Then you see all of the stuff around the net, and his defensive play, penalty killing and everything.”

“Everything we heard about him is true and magnified.”–Jets head coach Rick Bowness

So, how did the sixth-overall pick in the 2013 NHL Draft get here?

Jets winger Tyler Toffoli has seen Monahan’s progression firsthand, going back to their time together as teenagers on the Ottawa 67s of the Ontario Hockey League. Toffoli remembers Monahan returning from the World Under-17 Challenge (held in Winnipeg, where Monahan helped Team Ontario win a gold medal) in January of 2011 with a renewed sense of confidence.

“From when he came into Ottawa in junior, like any 16-year-old kid, he was scrawny, he was tall but he wasn’t grown into his body, yet,” said Toffoli, also acquired by the Jets prior to the trade deadline. “(Monahan) went to the under-17 tournament… we had some injuries at centre and he came back a completely different player.

“He’s always in the right spot, it feels like. He’s always been like that. He was one of those guys that did everything right. Coaches trust him everywhere he goes and that’s why he’s been so successful in his career.”

Longtime NHL head coach Bob Hartley was involved in the pre-draft meetings with the Calgary Flames in 2013 and Monahan left a positive first impression.

It turns out that Monahan didn’t just interview well.

He arrived at his first NHL training camp and Monahan made the team in his first crack at it, quickly becoming a focal point of the Flames rebuild along with Johnny Gaudreau.

“His maturity really struck me, right at that time,” Hartley said from Florida. “As soon as he came to the first training camp, I knew that we had an NHL player. There was no doubt in our mind.

“I remember many days we would do individual video together and he was a bright student of the game. He never took it for granted that he was going to be an NHL player. He was never entitled as a first-round pick. He was always willing to learn and it was also about how composed he was.”

Those qualities allowed Hartley to put more and more on Monahan’s plate despite his lack of experience at the professional level.

“Sean, right from the start, he never went to the American Hockey League. He went basically from primary school to university. He skipped high school,” said Hartley. “Penalty killing, five-on-five, big faceoffs in our zone. Big faceoffs in the offensive zone. It wasn’t only about faceoffs, it was about his understanding of the game and his commitment to play the right way.”

Even with the success he enjoyed, that first season tested Monahan’s mettle.

“The work he (Hartley) made me put in, that’s something that really helped me in my career. It’s not an easy league to play in and he really helped me push to that next limit.”–Sean Monahan

“It wasn’t easy. I was trying to stick around and make my mark and be an everyday player in the NHL,” said Monahan. “I wouldn’t necessarily say (Hartley) was hard on me, but he was on me a lot. Lots of video sessions, lots of time after practice and he really dissected my game. The work he made me put in, that’s something that really helped me in my career. It’s not an easy league to play in and he really helped me push to that next limit.”

Monahan, who fired 22 goals in his rookie season (2013-14) admits his appreciation for that push grew over time.

“He was just trying to push me to be all that I could,” he said. “I remember there were days I would go home and think, ‘This is tough.’ But looking back now, as I got older, it really benefitted me to work hard on both sides of the puck. The little details of the game are something he really stressed. That really helped me out for my career.”

Monahan took what Hartley told him in his exit interview to heart after that rookie season and had an excellent summer of training.

The Flames head coach was blown away when Monahan walked into his office in August of 2014.

“At the year end meeting, we talked about his faceoffs, his battles in the corners and where he had the frame to put on a few pounds of muscle,” said Hartley. “He came into my office, I looked at him and gosh, it was unbelievable, the change. He probably put on 10 or 15 pounds of muscle, but at the same time, he did it without losing his mobility.”

Although Monahan, listed at 6-foot-2, 202 pounds, battled through some tough injuries during his tenure (2013-22) with the Flames, he got healthy and regained his form with the Canadiens last season.

“Monny is a top goal scorer in this league. He knows how to score in tight,” said Flames captain Mikael Backlund. “He cares a lot and he plays with a team-first mindset. His whole time in Calgary, he was a great leader for us on and off the ice.”

Monahan, who had three 30-goal seasons during his time with the Flames, is back producing the way he did earlier in his career, with 24 goals and 56 points in 78 games in ‘23-24 split between the Habs and Jets.

“Sean is a true pro. That’s maybe not really so much about his game, but the way that he handled himself,” said current Flames head coach and former assistant Ryan Huska. “For his time around us, he made people around him better because of the way that he approached his day-to-day work. The cool thing to see when you watch him play is that he’s turned himself into a really good defensive centre, not just one who can score.”

Part of that comes from the tough matchups he faced in the Pacific Division as a teenager, going nose-to-nose with the likes of Ryan Getzlaf, Ryan Kesler, Henrik Sedin, Joe Thornton, Martin Hanzal, Anze Kopitar and Jeff Carter.

“He’s always been put in the situation of having to play against really good players and he’s realized that he has to play well at both ends of the ice,” said Toffoli. “When he came into the NHL, the Pacific Division was probably the hardest division to play in. Everywhere you went, there were really good centremen.”

Facing that stiff level of competition helped Monahan grow into the player he is today.

Although the focus for Monahan is on this playoff push and to see what the post-season brings, it’s impossible to ignore the fact he will be an unrestricted free agent for the second time in as many years on July 1.

Considering everything he’s brought to the Jets, finding a way to keep Monahan in the fold — potentially even before he hits the open market — is going to be a priority for Cheveldayoff.

After taking a one-year contract worth US$2 million (including a performance bonus), Monahan will be looking for a multi-year pact with a significant raise, somewhere in the range of US$5 million (or north of that).

There’s plenty of time for that negotiation to take place, but it’s abundantly clear Monahan is providing outstanding value, and given his age (he will be 30 in October), a five-year deal would align well with the organization’s window to win.

ken.wiebe@freepress.mb.ca

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