Sense of enthusiasm building as Jets roll back into town

Although he’s only been back in town for a few days, Luke Schenn has a much better sense of the road ahead as he prepares for his first full season with the Winnipeg Jets.

After coming over in a trade with the Nashville Predators at the deadline in March, Schenn was thankful for the opportunity to join a Stanley Cup contender for the stretch run and thrilled with how his new teammates and the organization went out of their way to make him feel welcome.

But learning a new system on the fly and trying to integrate himself into the lineup — with his wife and three kids remaining back in Tennessee — was by his own admission “overwhelming at times.”

Now with his family in tow, as he prepares for his 18th NHL season, the veteran defenceman is coming into training camp with ample enthusiasm.

“I’ve definitely got the itch to get going again,” Schenn told reporters on Friday after participating in a captain’s skate at Hockey For All Centre. “I’ve got my family here — which is a huge positive for ourselves and personally. That’s a big step. But on top of that, just the familiarity with everyone around here and knowing what the expectations are and how the organization is run. It’s more of a seamless transition, rather than being the new guy or the new kid in class.”

Schenn was among a small group of NHL players and hopefuls on the ice this week — and that group is expected to grow quickly by early next week.

Although training camp doesn’t officially open for just under two weeks, there’s a sense of enthusiasm building among the group that survived a hard-hitting series with the St. Louis Blues and advanced to the second round of the Stanley Cup playoffs against the Dallas Stars to conclude their Presidents’ Trophy winning regular season.

“In every off-season, every organization goes through changes and we’re no different. You lose a couple of guys in free agency and you gain a couple awesome veteran players who have won Stanley Cups before,” said Schenn. “It’s going to be great to get everyone back together here. Every year, at this time of year, everyone gets those jitters to kind of get back going again. That positive energy. Everyone has a clean slate and in saying that, we’ve still got some time here heading into camp. But it’s nice to be back in town.”

It’s been an eventual off-season for the Jets, with the departures of Nikolaj Ehlers, Mason Appleton and Brandon Tanev capturing the attention of the fan base.

“I was probably just as excited as probably every fan here when I saw the signing.”

The Jets also brought in a number of new faces, including a pair of Stanley Cup winners in Tanner Pearson (Los Angeles Kings, 2014) and Winnipegger Jonathan Toews (Chicago Blackhawks in 2010, 2013 and 2015).

Schenn and Pearson were teammates during their tenures with the Kings and Vancouver Canucks, while he has plenty of friends around the league that suited up with Toews.

“I was probably just as excited as probably every fan here when I saw the signing,” said Schenn. “I played against him lots over the years and got to know him a little bit. It’s pretty awesome that he chose to come to Winnipeg and everyone is excited to have him.”

Schenn got onto the ice with Toews on Thursday and came away impressed by how he’s looking on the comeback trail after two seasons out of the league and dealing with a variety of health challenges.

“He looks incredible. He’s still got it, for sure. It’s going to be exciting for everyone around here to watch him again,” said Schenn, who also answered a question about Toews’s winning pedigree. “I don’t even know how you put it into words. Just his presence alone. He probably wouldn’t even have to say a word the entire year, just his presence, walking around and being here would be enough. But when you’ve got three (Stanley) Cups and the resumé he has, in terms of being a captain for so long in the league, being a winner, playing for Hockey Canada internationally.

“You name it, he’s got the resumé you dream of as a kid for sure. For him to come back, with everything he’s gone through personally and to give it a go in his hometown here, it’s going to be such a positive for every player in this room and the organization and just the city of Winnipeg as a whole.”

Schenn is also familiar with veteran forward Gustav Nyquist from their time together with the Predators for parts of two seasons.

Toews’s joy and enthusiasm were on display earlier this week as he buzzed around the ice during the informal sessions, high-fiving members of the Jets and Manitoba Moose at each and every turn.

It seems abundantly clear that Toews has put in a lot of work to get himself ready for the task ahead and that he’s going to enjoy the journey, which is something he pointed out during his press conference back in July.

Jets forward Morgan Barron also made his way back into Winnipeg this week and, while he hasn’t been on the ice with Toews yet, he’s heard plenty about the competitive spirit of the veteran and how he conducts himself on and off the ice.

“The first thing that pops off to me is his attitude,” Barron, who signed a two-year extension during the off-season, told reporters. “Someone like that who’s won so much at every level, you hear the stories about him and his personality and what he’s going to bring to the rink.

“Obviously happy for a guy like that. He’s had a long journey to get back to the point where he feels ready to play. I’m really excited to kind of get to know him and learn from him.”

As he prepares for his fourth full season with the Jets, Barron is also excited about what is on the horizon for a core group that is determined to take the next step.

“It’s always fun when you’re winning. That makes everybody’s life easier coming to the rink,” said Barron.

“Obviously, there are changes. There always are, but I think it’s exciting to get some new faces in here, guys who will definitely make an impact. And, yeah, just trying to replicate that start we had last year.”

ken.wiebe@freepress.mb.ca

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