‘We need to find that spark’

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This article was published 20/03/2025 (200 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

EDMONTON — Nino Niederreiter is trying to keep a level head. But the veteran Winnipeg Jets winger admits one of the worst offensive droughts of his lengthy career is really starting to wear on him.

“It’s tough not to get carried away too much,” he told the Free Press on Thursday, a few hours before facing off against the Edmonton Oilers inside Rogers Place. “But at the same time you always have that feeling of wanting to produce.”

Niederreiter hasn’t done much of that lately, with just one assist to show for his last 14 games. He’s also gone minus-six over that span after being plus-20 through the first 55 games of the season, suggesting play in his own end has taken an unfortunate turn as well.

“It’s very frustrating,” he said. “You always want to be the best version of yourself possible.”

That has become evident in recent games, especially on Tuesday night in Vancouver where Niederreiter had to stop himself from smashing his stick over the boards after another disappointing shift. The 32-year-old from Switzerland is clearly pressing, adding elements of risk to his game that you don’t see.

Take the waning seconds of the first period against the Canucks, with the Jets down 2-1. Niederreiter tried a hope pass through the neutral zone which was quickly intercepted, turned the other way and resulted in a Nils Hoglander goal with three seconds left before the intermission.

“Was it a great play? No,” said Niederreiter. “As a hockey player, you know what you did wrong. If it had hit the tape (of teammate Mason Appleton), everybody would say, ‘That was a hell of a play, great vision.’ Obviously it didn’t. It is what it is… You get frustrated sometimes.”

Head coach Scott Arniel described that sequence of events as a “back-breaker” and took the rare step of separating up the normally-reliable shutdown line of Niederreiter, Appleton and captain Adam Lowry to start the second period.

Niederreiter and Appleton (who has no goals and one assist in his last 10 games) were demoted to the fourth line to play beside Morgan Barron, while Brandon Tanev and Alex Iafallo moved up to play with Lowry and connected on a second-period goal.

“I think as a line our forecheck hasn’t been as good as it should be. We all know that,” said Niederreiter, who had 30 points (14G, 16A) in 69 games prior to facing Edmonton.

“That’s something which is our staple, and we’ve just been a little bit discombobulated together. I think we need to find that spark where we get in the O-zone and spend a significant amount of time down there. I think that’s the biggest thing, getting pucks to the net as well. That’s something we haven’t been doing very well.”

In a show of faith from their head coach, the trio were back together against the Oilers on Thursday.

“It’s very frustrating. You always want to be the best version of yourself possible.”–Nino Niederreiter

“You know what, we talked to those guys, they knew they need to be a little bit better,” Arniel said following the morning skate.

“The last couple of years here they’ve done a pretty good job against some of the top people on Edmonton. Put them back, they know now what they need to do. Just sometimes in a game you’re looking for a spark and we kind of got one making that switch. They know what their responsibilities are and I’m sure they’ll be better.”

Arniel said there’s no mystery as to what makes Niederreiter most effective.

“The thing I always (think) about is, ‘Are you doing the other things? The other aspects of the game?’ He’s a power forward and is he doing those things nightly? And that’s winning battles, that’s getting to the net, being strong on the walls. Spend a lot more time on the inside of the ice,” said Arniel.

“I think if you do that enough times, it’ll bounce your way. He scores a lot of goals around that net front. It would be nice to see him get a greasy one and get off and running again.”

Niederreiter, who has 237 career goals over 956 games, is no stranger to cold spells despite eclipsing the 20-goal mark seven times during his career.

He finished last season on a 16-game scoring drought, then failed to light the lamp in five playoff contests. He also had a 13-game span without a tally earlier this year, although he did have six assists in that time.

“It never gets easier. It’s just as hard as when I was younger,” Niederreiter said of managing emotions during the peaks and valleys that come with professional sports.

“You want to create some offence. Sometimes it works out, sometimes it doesn’t. I’ve just got to stay with it and go from there, try to make the right plays. We had some looks in Seattle (last Sunday), some looks in the game before that (against Dallas). Obviously last game our line wasn’t very good, but it is what it is.”

“He scores a lot of goals around that net front. It would be nice to see him get a greasy one and get off and running again.” – Head coach Scott Arniel

Perhaps the man known to teammates as El Niño — as in the complex weather pattern that can cause temperatures to soar — can start heating up down the stretch for a Jets team that can always use more secondary scoring.

“In an 82-game season you’re going to have your ups and downs, your frustration and all that,” said Niederreiter, who is signed for two more seasons with Winnipeg at US$4 million.

“It’s about knowing, what can I do to create more shots? What can I do to find a different way to get offence? That’s something we’ve got to search for as a line.”

mike.mcintyre@freepress.mb.ca

X and Bluesky: @mikemcintyrewpg