Morrissey excited for possible hockey homecoming

Josh Morrissey’s eyes lit up as soon as the subject was mentioned.

The World Cup of Hockey is returning in 2028 — and one of the hosts just happens to be the hometown of the decorated Winnipeg Jets defenceman, who already has a 4 Nations Face-Off and Olympics on his international resume.

Calgary and Prague, Czech Republic will co-host the round-robin portion of the eight-nation tournament, with the action shifting to Edmonton for the two semifinal games and the final.

“Obviously, being from Calgary it’s cool that it is going to be there. A lot of excitement in the city, with the new arena being built,” Morrissey said Tuesday.

“On an individual level, how cool would it be to play in that event. Definitely an exciting announcement. It’s going to be a great event.”

It almost feels like the hockey universe owes this one to Morrissey. He missed the 4 Nations final with illness, then was knocked out of the Olympics after one period of action with an upper-body injury.

Third time the charm?

“I think that with the way it went at the Olympics for me personally,” said Morrissey.

He will be on the cusp of turning 33 in February 2028, and 35 when the 2030 Olympics come around in the French Alps.

“Hoping to keep playing at an elite level for my team but to also have a chance at a World Cup. Hopefully I am still at an elite level and improving and have another chance at the Olympics,” said Morrissey, who had 45 points (11G, 34A) in 61 games prior to facing the Predators.

“There is lots of goals externally like that but right now I am focused on (Tuesday’s) game and being at my best.”

The NHL and NHLPA have not yet revealed which eight countries will participate.

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Is Mark Scheifele getting better with age?

The numbers suggest he is, with the 33-year-old already establishing a new career high in assists and on the cusp of shattering his season-best in points, too.

It helps to have the yin to his yang in Kyle Connor, who is also putting up huge numbers and recently eclipsed the 30-goal mark for the eighth time.

You get the sense these two long-time linemates and good friends are pushing each other — while also dragging the rest of their team into battle.

“They’re both fantastic players. They’ve both been incredible for a long time and consistent,” said Morrissey.

“The statistical numbers that they’ve put up every year, that element of consistency along with the greatness that they show night in and night out is super impressive. This season they’ve really been leading the charge on the offensive side and the all-around game, and definitely we lean heavily on those guys to be great, and they have been.”

“They’ve been difference makers and outstanding all season and excited to watch them down the stretch here.”

Alex Iafallo currently finds himself playing on a line with Scheifele and Connor and admits there’s plenty of “pinch me” moments that come with such an assignment.

“Just unbelievable up and down the ice, the control they have,” said Iafallo.

“Offensively how they get to the net, two on twos, three on twos, stuff like that. It’s huge for our team. Pushing to that next level, I think is the biggest thing. And you can see it the last few games. You know everybody’s going behind them, and they’re the leaders and leading the charge.”

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Scott Arniel knows exactly when — and why — his team’s fortunes began to change for the better.

That would be the aftermath of the Olympic break, which allowed the Jets to have a week of training camp-style practices.

“We had to reset. And it’s put us in this position here where we’re still in the race,” he said prior to Tuesday’s game against the Nashville Predators.

“There are some areas that we changed, that we tinkered with. Whether it was our d-zone coverage, whether it was our forecheck. I won’t get into them all, but there were areas where we tinkered with things. We went through everything – breakouts with the puck, all the stuff without the puck, specialty teams, six on five, five on six, all that stuff.”

Arniel said one of the keys was having seven straight days of small-area games which pitted players against each other and ultimately came down to the wire.

“At the end it came down to a 3-3 tie and the last day was game No. 7. So it actually worked out great. It actually kept our competitive side up,” said Arniel.

“We talked about the practices being extremely competitive. It wasn’t just skate around. It was hard. It was trying to get us prepared for what was coming, which is the hard time of year, next to the playoffs. This stretch, from the Olympic break to the end of the season.”

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There was a noticeable uptick in volume at Tuesday’s morning skate — and it didn’t take long to realize why.

Neal Pionk was on the ice, wearing a yellow non-contact sweater as he works his way back from a lower-body injury that has sidelined him since Jan. 13.

“The guys were lively. He brings a lot of energy. It is fun to have him back out there again,” said Morrissey.

It sounds like Pionk won’t need much longer to ramp up.

“He’s coming on the road trip. He’ll be getting into contact here. That’s the next step for him,” said Arniel. “Getting real close. I’m not making any promises on the road trip, but he’s coming on the trip to get into contact.”

As for Winnipeg’s three other injured players — veteran forwards Vlad Namestnikov and Nino Niederreiter and defenceman Colin Miller — there’s not much news.

“Millsy had to take a little bit of a reset. Not back on the ice yet,” said Jets head coach Scott Arniel.

“The other two are up and running. They’ve been kind of doing one on, one off, or two on, two off scenario. Just want to make sure the wear and tear isn’t getting them. We’ll see when we get back from the trip.”

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