Maurice taking new approach to training camp

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 29/09/2021 (1444 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

There was a time, early in Paul Maurice’s career, when training camp seemed to last forever. Players would show up in early September and need the better part of a month just to get themselves back into some semblance of shape after a sloth-like summer.

Those days are gone, the product of an evolving sport that is faster than ever. As a coach, that means tailoring workouts to best suit your group.

“This camp I haven’t run before,” Maurice, who is about to begin his 24th season behind an NHL bench, said Wednesday. Rather than focus on repetitive drills and bag skates, Maurice has put an emphasis on replicating game-like conditions during the first week. More puck battles. More systems and special teams work. And, for the first time, daily scrimmages.

“I’ve run versions of it, but the structure of camp, what we’re trying to do with our team is all brand new. So you can put those two together and it’s exciting for me,” said Maurice.

The handful of new tricks are appreciated by an old dog like Paul Stastny.

“It’s kind of Groundhog Day,” Stastny, 35, said of a typical pre-season of the past. “I think even younger guys want to get in the games so you can play with a little more intensity, show a little bit more out there.”

Stastny and several other core Jets — Blake Wheeler, Mark Scheifele, Kyle Connor, Adam Lowry, Josh Morrissey, Nate Schmidt and Connor Hellebuyck — got their first dry-run on Wednesday when they suited up against Edmonton at Canada Life Centre. They were spectators when the club opened up its six-game preseason schedule last Sunday against Ottawa.

***

Maurice plans to bring a less polished lineup on the road this weekend for back-to-back games in Edmonton (Saturday) and Vancouver (Sunday), which will give way to a slew of roster cuts early next week. The Jets currently have 44 skaters in camp, and must get down to a maximum of 23 prior to the regular-season opener in Anaheim on Oct. 13

One player who won’t be hunting Ducks is Scheifele, who will serve the last of a four-game suspension doled out during the playoffs that spring for a charging major against Montreal’s Jake Evans.

Maurice said he will likely experiment over one of team’s final two preseason games next week with a tweaked top line that will account for Scheifele’s brief absence. He wouldn’t tip his hand on who is likely to step between wingers Wheeler and Connor.

***

Expect to see more Nikolaj Ehlers on the power play this season. Despite being on the so-called second unit, which was at times more productive than the top group despite seeing a lot less ice last year, Maurice plans for that to be more balanced going forward.

“We’ll get Nikky’s unit quite a bit of time because we’ve seen it work at an elite level for a long time,” he said. “The other unit maybe less time before we make some adjustments to it but having two units was good for us last year. It keeps all of our skilled players involved in the game and we’ll continue to do that.”

***

The last two NHL seasons have been thrown out of whack due to the global pandemic. Although the 2021-22 campaign is nearly back to a normal schedule, there’s a handful of key dates that fans may want to take note of.

The trade deadline, which typically falls near the end of February, will instead by March 21 this year. With the regular-season not ending until Apr. 29, and playoffs not beginning until May 2, the latest possible day the Stanley Cup could be handed out is June 30.

The first round of the NHL draft is set for July 7 in Montreal, with rounds two through seven happening on July 8. Free agent frenzy, which usually falls on Canada Day, will begin on July 13.

mike.mcintyre@freepress.mb.caTwitter: @mikemcintyrewpg