Lack of points not panicking Perreault

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This article was published 23/03/2018 (2730 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Mathieu Perreault knows the NHL can humble you in a hurry.

The Winnipeg Jets forward has enjoyed a couple of highly productive stretches this season, blocks of games when he was an influential contributor to the club’s scoring capacity.

The last month has not been one of those memorable segments.

Prior to Winnipeg’s clash with the visiting Anaheim Ducks on Friday night, Perreault hadn’t scored in 14 games, and he’d neither set a goal up nor even produced a secondary assist.

The points dried up after the Jets’ 7-2 triumph over the Florida Panthers on Feb. 18, a night when the 30-year-old from Drummondville, Que., scored once and chipped in two assists.

Call it a complete reversal of fortune for Perreault, who was cruising along with 16 goals and 37 points in 47 games before his stick went cold.

Being bitten by a flu bug in early March didn’t help, either.

“It is (humbling), for sure. It’s tough sometimes,” he said Friday, following the Central Division squad’s morning skate at Bell MTS Place. “Obviously, you’d like to produce. I feel like I was doing that before.

“If they’re not going in now, I guess I’m saving it for the playoffs. It’s all good.”

Indeed, the versatile winger remains confident things will turn around as he works to find a good fit with centre Andrew Copp and Bryan Little, two players who haven’t exactly padded their own stats lately.

Heading into the tilt with Anaheim, Little had a goal and two assists in nine games, while Copp had registered a pair of assists in his last 10.

After missing a dozen games with a lower-body injury from mid-October to mid-November, Perreault returned with a purpose. He supplied eight goals and 15 points in 14 games, while spending the bulk of his time on a surprisingly effective fourth line with Matt Hendricks and Joel Armia, and served on the Jets’ second power-play unit.

The 5-8, 188-pounder, a sixth-round pick of the Washington Capitals in 2006, was a regular points contributor between New Year’s Day and mid-February, scoring six goals and 10 helpers in 18 games, dividing his time alongside, it seemed, just about every forward in Jets white and blue.

Head coach Paul Maurice called him a firefighter, deployed to wherever help was required.

Perreault, in the first year of a four-year contract extension (signed in July 2016) that carries an average annual value of US$4.125 million per season, is looking to regain that spark as Winnipeg advances toward the post-season blaze.

He’s spoken with Maurice about his lack of offensive contribution, and no one’s pressing the panic button.

“I’m not too worried about it. The team is winning and right now, that’s all that matters to me,” Perreault said. “I play hard, I play physical, I get on the puck. When pucks aren’t going in, I try to do different things. I had a talk with Paul, and everything’s fine.”

With the flu symptoms all but gone, he was buzzing Tuesday night, and had two quality scoring chances against Los Angeles — but was denied by Kings netminder Jack Campbell.

Maurice has noticed a more engaged Perreault lately.

“I’m seeing him on the upswing. About 10 days ago, he had the flu, and it set him back in a big way. But going a stretch of games where you don’t get points isn’t a concern,” Maurice said. “The last game, especially, he had two or three really good looks. You’re starting to see in practice where he’s back. If he’s causing a lot of havoc and smiling, he’s on his game, and we’re starting to see that.”

jason.bell@freepress.mb.caTwitter: @WFPJasonBell