Healthy Barron a bonus for Jets

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This article was published 27/11/2022 (1015 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

CHICAGO — It was during a round of golf with new Winnipeg Jets head coach Rick Bowness last summer in their shared hometown of Halifax that Morgan Barron learned he was very much being counted on for big things this season. A starting assignment on the third line, beside Adam Lowry and Mason Appleton, was his to lose.

Unfortunately, an upper-body injury suffered just prior to training camp caused him to miss much of the preseason, but he was ready just in time for opening night. But then came a wrist ailment that only seemed to get worse, one that doctors ultimately decided near the end of October required surgery.

“It had been lingering for a little while. It was just a carpal bone that I got a little fracture in,” said Barron. “It’s fairly common in a lot of sports I guess, or so I’ve learned, but it just got to the point where it was bugging me and I couldn’t really play effectively with it so it was better to get it done and luckily it was a little bit of a quieter month compared to what we have now so just wanted to get it out of the way.”

Barron ultimately missed 10 games after going under the knife, but was back in the lineup Sunday night as the Jets skated to a 7-2 victory over the Chicago Blackhawks at United Center. This time, he was on a new-look fourth line with Dominic Toninato and Saku Maenalanen, who scored twice. He chipped in with an assist, giving him five points (one goal, four assists) through 10 games.

“I was excited. I mean, anytime you’re out, it’s a little tougher watching the guys from home or from the stands but we’ve played some great hockey over the past month or so,” said Barron. “I was really happy just watching the guys play as long as they kept getting wins, but yeah, it was tough. Knock on wood. I missed a little bit of camp there and I missed a bit of time at the start of the year. It wasn’t ideal but neither injury has been anything serious. They’ve both been pretty quick so I’ve been lucky and hopefully I can stay in the lineup.”

Barron brings something the Jets don’t have a ton of in the forward group — size and strength. The 6-4, 220-pounder, acquired in last year’s deadline deal with the New York Rangers in exchange for Andrew Copp, is just 23, making him a valuable part of both the present and the future.

“He’s been a very good player for us. He’s just going to keep getting better,” Bowness said Sunday night. “He doesn’t have a lot of NHL experience, right? He doesn’t. He’s a big guy that can skate and he gave us what he can do. We’ve missed him and we’re glad to have him back.”

An immediate reunion with Lowry and Appleton isn’t in the cards, since Appleton is now shelved for at least two more months following wrist surgery. But with Nikolaj Ehlers also out long-term — at least until early in 2023 following sports hernia surgery last week — a healthy Barron will be a valuable piece for the Jets in the coming days and weeks.

“He’s played with different guys. Tonight we wanted to get him to step back into the lineup slowly, which he did, but that line was very, very good for us tonight,” said Bowness. “Morgan’s a very good player, he’s a penalty-killer for us. He gives us important minutes.”

Barron said there was no problem finding some instant chemistry in his return, as he and Toninato spent time together late last season.

“We talk a lot as a team about all four lines wanting to look the same, play the same system, and just kind of play the same way,” said Barron. “For me it was kind of just plug in and play, I wasn’t really thinking too much about who I was with. Obviously, both of them made some great plays and Saku came up with two huge goals for us.”

mike.mcintyre@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @mikemcintyrewpg