Injury not expected to cause Morrissey to miss significant time

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This article was published 08/01/2025 (314 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Scott Arniel stepped to the podium and didn’t have to be the bearer of bad news, which was a positive development for the Winnipeg Jets.

The head coach of the Jets sounded cautiously optimistic that star defenceman Josh Morrissey wasn’t going to miss much — if any — time after leaving Tuesday’s game in the second period with a lower-body injury.

Arniel stopped short of proclaiming Morrissey would be in the lineup when the Jets hit the midway point of this eight-game homestand Friday against the Los Angeles Kings, though he confirmed that he hasn’t already been ruled out.

“Feeling better. We’ll see. Just kind of getting some movement going here,” said Arniel. “So he’ll get some more treatment here and we’ll see how he is (on Thursday).”

Not having Morrissey available for a chunk of the second period and all of the third meant that minutes were on the rise for Dylan DeMelo (who played a team-high 25:27), Neal Pionk, Logan Stanley, Dylan Coghlan and Ville Heinola.

If the Jets are able to avoid losing Morrissey for any length of time, that would be a bonus, as he’s someone that contributes to all facets of the game and averages more than 24 minutes per game while chipping in at nearly a point-per-game clip.

Dylan Samberg, who has been out since Nov. 23 with a broken foot, was a full participant in practice again on Wednesday and if he can make it through Thursday’s workout without incident, there’s the potential for him to be activated from injured reserve and return to the second pairing with Pionk.

Samberg’s presence has certainly been missed since he suffered the injury blocking a one-timer from Nashville Predators forward Steven Stamkos.

“Well, his importance is huge,” Jets assistant coach Dean Chynoweth said last week. “I like his hockey IQ. I mean, his anticipation as a defenceman, that’s a really important thing. You combine that with the reach and the length that he has, that allows him to close quicker, that allows him to eliminate plays, and then obviously at the netfront, as a big body, it helps clearing the net for our goalies.”

Provided Morrissey stays in the lineup and Samberg is back, the Jets will need to scratch one of Coghlan, Heinola or Stanley.

Complicating matters somewhat is the Jets are set for their fifth set of games on consecutive days this weekend, so it’s possible that one of the two players could be held out until Saturday’s tilt against the Colorado Avalanche.

The other side of the equation is if the players are close to 100 per cent and get medical clearance, you can be sure Arniel would love to have both of them at his disposal for a defence that will be without Colin Miller (fractured larynx) and Haydn Fleury (lower body).

Arniel also provided a quick update on the status of right-winger Mason Appleton, who has missed the past five games and remains week-to-week.

“Yeah, he’s still getting there. He’s still on the table. He hasn’t done a whole lot. Obviously he hasn’t been on the ice,” said Arniel, noting Appleton is getting some work done in the weight room. He’s still a ways away.”

Although only eight skaters were on the ice for the optional on-ice workout, a number of players hit the weights hard — a product of having two days between games and two days off the ice earlier this week.

THE RECOGNITION: Nikolaj Ehlers has watched Connor Hellebuyck mature and grow a great deal during his decade in the NHL, so he was elated to see the Jets all-world goalie reach another impressive milestone in Tuesday’s 5-2 victory over the Nashville Predators.

“It was awesome. Obviously, he’s waited for that one for a little bit. What he does for this team, for this organization, what he’s done so far, it’s pretty special,” said Ehlers. To be able to be in the room with him and to be on the ice when he got No. 300 is pretty cool for me as well.

“Obviously, he’s done his work to get to where he is. I’ve been with him since he got into the league, so it’s been a fun last nine, 10 years watching him as a goalie to just grow, grow and keep on growing and get to that superstar level that he’s at now. He’s the best goalie in the league and he’s a special guy, so that’s exciting.”

Jets forward Morgan Barron appreciates the connection Hellebuyck has built with the fan base during his tenure.

“He very much embraces Winnipeg, and I think Winnipeg embraces him. That’s really cool to see, the connection that such a great player has with such a great city,” said Barron. “You can tell he loves it here, he’s passionate about being here and passionate about being a Winnipeg Jet. You can see it night in and night out, you saw it (on Tuesday), he was real pumped up.

“I know we kind of let him down to get that 300th win for him a few times, but it was really cool for him to get it, especially in that fashion. He made some huge saves for us at the end there.”

The Jets will honour Hellebuyck for hitting 500 games played, 300 wins and 40-plus shutouts prior to Friday’s game against the Kings.

THE NOD: Top Jets’ defence prospect Elias Salomonsson was selected to participate in the American Hockey League All-Star Classic on Wednesday.

Salomonsson, 20, remains out of action with a suspected shoulder injury, but had three goals and 12 points in 17 AHL games before he was sidelined.

The second-round pick (55th overall) of the Jets in the 2022 NHL Draft is the second rookie defenceman, and seventh rookie in Moose franchise history, to take part in the AHL All-Star Classic.

The 2025 AHL all-star game is being hosted at Acrisure Arena in Coachella Valley, Calif., on Feb. 2 and 3

ken.wiebe@freepress.mb.ca

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