In the “Nik” of time

ST. LOUIS — They call him “Fly” because of the way he moves around the ice. But it would appear Nikolaj Ehlers also has a lightning-fast ability to recovery from injury.

How else to explain his surprise return to the Winnipeg Jets lineup on Friday night? The 29-year-old was still wearing a yellow non-contact sweater as recently as Wednesday and was classified as “week-to-week” by head coach Scott Arniel due to a lower-body injury he suffered April 12 in Chicago.

“It arrived a lot quicker than we thought,” Arniel said following the morning skate.

The final test for Ehlers was the pre-game warmup, which he passed with flying colours. His return came just in the “Nik” of time for a Jets team that lost top centre Mark Scheifele in Wednesday’s Game 6 to an upper-body injury.

“That’s a big boost for our offensive game, a big boost for our transition game, and adding another elite player to the lineup,” said captain Adam Lowry, who skated on a line with Ehlers and Cole Perfetti.

Ehlers first suffered what appeared to be a foot injury on April 3 when he blocked a shot against Vegas, missing the next two contests. He was just two games into his return when he re-aggravated the issue after running into a lineman and falling awkwardly to the ice. He was spotted in a walking boot shortly after.

It was suggested to Lowry that players might heal a bit differently this time of year, with so much on the line in the playoffs.

“I think the medical staff’s not putting anyone out there if they’re going to be in a situation where it’s going to get worse or potentially dangerous to them,” he said.

“I think they’ve done a great job with the treatment. He’s done a real good job of making sure he’s dialled in all the extra recovery stuff you can do. Sometimes it takes time. To see him skating with us the last few days and know he’s feeling good, we’re excited. Everyone at this time of the year is playing with bumps, bruises.”

Ehlers is a pending unrestricted free agent this summer. He had 63 points (24G, 39A) in 69 regular season games this year, which was just one off his career high.

 

College reunion

The Jets had another surprising addition to the lineup Friday night in the form of veteran centre Dominic Toninato.

He made his debut in the series on the fourth line between Alex Iafallo and Brandon Tanev, getting the nod over a pair of skaters in Jaret Anderson-Dolan and David Gustafsson, who have already played in the series but were healthy scratches.

“He’s got some experience in the playoffs. He’s got some grit to him, he’s good on face-offs,” said Arniel.

“It just kind of, I don’t know, just kind of looking at that line now, it just gives them some identity. He played games for us this year, he’s played in the past. Just like a lot of what he brings.”

Toninato did appear in five games with the Jets this year while also serving as captain of the Manitoba Moose, where he had 36 points (18G, 18A).

This is his fifth year with the organization and he played in three playoff games during the truncated 2021 COVID-impacted season, even scoring one goal in a mostly empty rink.

“That was a weird time,” he admitted Friday. “Just play your game. I am getting this opportunity for a reason, to bring energy and play hard, play the body and try to contribute as much as I can.”

Toninato is good friends with Iafallo, with the pair playing four years of college hockey together at the University of Minnesota-Duluth.

“You have got to find that chemistry as quick as possible. Playing with Al, I know what he brings as we played a lot together back in the day,” he said.

“Get him the puck. He is a great guy to play with. He does everything. He can go up and down the lineup, play in any situation, is highly skilled and good with the stick and can bring that energy. I am excited to get him the puck and let him do his magic.”

Toninato, 31, was also pumped to get out of the press box and jump right into what has been a dynamic, intense playoff series.

“I think it has been great hockey, up and down for both teams,” he said.

 

Accolades for Arniel

Arniel has pushed the right buttons all season long for the Jets and was rewarded Friday by being named one of the three finalists for the Jack Adams Award, presented to the National Hockey League’s top coach.

“It’s a tremendous honour, and I’m real appreciative,” he said following the morning skate.

This season was Arniel’s first as head coach of the Jets. He led the club to franchise records in points (116) and wins (56) as the Jets won the club’s first-ever Presidents’ Trophy for having the NHL’s best record.

The team also won its first division title while based in Winnipeg, something the old Jets franchise never accomplished.

Spencer Carbery of the Washington Capitals and Martin St. Louis of the Montreal Canadiens are the other nominees for the coaching award.

This is the first time Arniel, 62, has been a finalist for the award. The winner will be announced near the end of the Stanley Cup playoffs.

Rick Bowness, the Jets’ former head coach, was nominated for the award after the 2023-24 season. Arniel spent two years as an associate coach before Bowness decided to retire.

Arniel said the work the rest of the coaching staff did this season played a big part in the team’s success this regular season.

“I’m appreciative… but there are some other, bigger prizes we’re after right now,” he said.

 

What’s up, doc?

We’ll give the last word to St. Louis Blues head coach Jim Montgomery, who fired a bit of a zinger in Arniel’s direction on Friday prior to puck drop.

Montgomery was asked by the Free Press about his club’s travel difficulties a day earlier, which included having their plane break down prior to flying out of Winnipeg. A scheduled 11 a.m. departure turned into 7 p.m.

“I know some guys took a nap, some guys played cards. Some guys watch a Netflix series, whatever the case may be,” Montgomery said of how the eight extra hours in Winnipeg were spent. “Just do what you do to give yourself peace of mind. We got home in plenty of time, we got great sleep, so we’re fine.”

As his availability concluded, Montgomery began to leave the room and then joked with reporters that he spent the idle time “in the O.R.”

That was a cheeky response to Arniel publicly stating Wednesday night that he “didn’t know Monty got his medical degree” after Montgomery suggested Scheifele wasn’t hurt by a penalized hit by Blues captain Brayden Schenn, but rather a clean hit later in the first period delivered by Radek Faksa.

Good one, Doc.

mike.mcintyre@freepress.mb.ca

X and Bluesky: @mikemcintyrewpg