Pionk picks his spots

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This article was published 13/03/2024 (572 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Neal Pionk was in a jovial mood Wednesday morning, although his competitive nature also shone through when the subject turned to which Winnipeg Jets regular dishes out the most hits.

The conversation included a history lesson on how the defenceman became a guy to be keenly aware of on the ice — and how he actually had to learn to dial things down a bit over the years.

A long line of coaches, his father included, told him he needed to stop running around trying to hit everything that moved.

While Pionk was quick to admit he finally got the message, he certainly hasn’t eliminated that part of his game entirely, nor can he afford to do so.

“It’s something that I’m conscious of. I know I’m smaller so I can’t run around and try to make those big hits because I’ll end up falling or getting myself out of position,” said Pionk, who had five hits to go with four blocked shots and three shots on goal — including the game-winning first goal, in Monday’s 3-0 victory over the Washington Capitals.

“There’s definitely, as I’ve gotten older, been more of a conscious approach to it. It used to be worse. I think every coach that I had, including my dad, had to sit me down at some point during the year and say, ‘You can’t do that. You’re doing that too much.’

“That kind tapered off toward the end of my college career. Got a little more mature with it. But it’s something that I’ve always done.”

Prior to Wednesday’s matchup with the Nashville Predators, Pionk trailed only Brenden Dillon (184) in the team lead for hits. He was five back of his blue-line partner.

“It’s just part of what we do naturally. I also think that we feed off of each other. He sees me hit a guy and he wants to make some louder noise. We feed off of each other. That’s what we’ve always done,” said Pionk, who was asked if there’s a friendly competition or pride at play over who would come out on top in that facet of the game. “Now there is, now that it’s close. I’ll mention it. We will divide it up by pounds, see who’s up.”

Pionk would be the clear-cut leader in hits per pound, something that got a chuckle from Jets head coach Rick Bowness.

“Who’s our best hitter? We’ve got a few of them. Adam (Lowry) uses his body. Dilly, Pionk when he gets a chance. (Pionk’s) a very strong guy. It would be those guys, I guess,” said Bowness, who was just getting started in his praise of Pionk. “That’s how he plays, he gets engaged in the game. He’s very powerful on his feet. Again, not the biggest guy, but never shies away from contact.”

Pionk came by that feistiness naturally while growing up in Hermantown, Minn.

“Growing up with four brothers probably,” said Pionk. “We were all kind of that way, too, just how you grow up in the basement ramming into each other and hitting each other. It gets carried over into my entire career.”

Pionk has been known to break out the hip check on multiple occasions over the course of his career, though the inspiration for the old-school move is harder to pinpoint.

“Early 2000s hockey? I don’t know. No one specifically,” said Pionk. “It’s just something that naturally developed, I guess. Same thing, you’ve got to be cautious with it, though. If you’re looking to do it or planning to do it, you’re going to get yourself out of position.”

One of the other moves Pionk has been known to break out over the years is a spin-o-rama — or Pionkian Pirouette — although that one hasn’t come out with as much regularity this season.

Is Pionk simply saving it for a special occasion?

“I’ll keep the same theme going: it used to be worse when I was younger,” said Pionk. “I used to do it a lot, and it would work most of the time. But when it didn’t work it was really ugly. Because I was the defenceman, and like I said almost every coach said, ‘Hey, come on now, we can’t be doing it every time.’

“You can’t go out there and plan it. If you go out there and plan it you’re going to get into trouble. It’s just something that happens naturally and you read off the play and make it happen if it’s there.”

Pionk’s ability to come through with a bounceback season has been an important development for the Jets, who close out a three-game homestand on Friday against the Anaheim Ducks.

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SPECIAL VISIT — The Steinbach Pistons of the Manitoba Junior Hockey League have a source of inspiration and they were in the stands during the morning skate to see Predators winger Cole Smith on Wednesday morning.

Smith, who hails from Brainerd, Minn., spent two seasons with the Pistons (2014-16) before spending four seasons with the University of North Dakota Fighting Hawks.

Accepting the invitation from Pistons head coach Paul Dyck — who played with Smith’s uncle Sandy on the Muskegon Lumberjacks of the International Hockey League — ended up being one of the best decisions of Smith’s life.

“It’s pretty cool how it all turned out,” said Smith. “Where the path has led has been pretty cool, pretty unique. I don’t know if I would have been able to predict it if somebody would have told me that back then. My goal was just to get a Division 1 offer and I was lucky enough to get one at the end of my last year.”

Smith, who recently signed a two-year contract extension with the Predators, has become a mainstay on the Predators fourth line with Michael McCarron and suited up in his 144th NHL game Wednesday against the Jets.

“Just the energy he brings. With his length and how fast he is, he hounds every puck. He’s in your face,” said Nashville head coach Andrew Brunette. “He’s relentless on pucks, which is exactly what we want. He’s had an unbelievable year and he’s a key part of our identity as a group here.”

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MILIC POSTS SHUTOUT — Jets goalie prospect Thomas Milic made 29 saves to record his first American Hockey League shutout Wednesday afternoon in a 6-0 win over the host Milwaukee Admirals.

Milic, a fifth-round pick in the 2023 NHL Draft, improved to 9-5-2 on the season while lowering his goals-against average to 2.72 and raising his save percentage to .905 in 17 AHL games. He also appeared in 18 games with the Norfolk Admirals of the ECHL, where he was selected to appear in the league all-star game.

Kristian Reichel scored a pair of goals to pace the offensive attack, while Simon Lundmark, Jeff Malott, Henri Nikkanen and Parker Ford added singles for the Moose, who improved to 24-29-1-1 to remain fifth in the Central Division.

ken.wiebe@freepress.mb.ca

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