Harkins fills up with hi-octane

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This article was published 09/11/2021 (1438 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

JANSEN Harkins had no intention of being left behind.

The Winnipeg Jets winger recognized the need to open the throttle if he was going to meet the minimum requirements of playing full time in the NHL.

“That’s something that I’m trying to bring to this team,” Harkins said Tuesday, following the morning skate. “Honestly though, coming up I never thought of myself as someone who was a super-fast or speedy player. That’s something that I’m trying to kind of put into my game more recently.”

Harkins had the pace to dominate in the Western Hockey League, racking up a pile of points over four seasons (2013-17) with the Prince George Cougars. His transition to the American Hockey League wasn’t instantaneous, by any stretch, yet he became the offensive driver for the Manitoba Moose in his final two years with the Jets’ minor-league affiliate.

None of those situations match his current workplace, where the velocity at which men move is incomparable.

“It’s the fastest league in the world for a reason,” he said. “For me, it was try to keep my game fast and simple and be on pucks. When you kind of break it down like that, you don’t really have a choice but to go out there and skate fast.”

After being in and out of the lineup the past two seasons, Harkins, 24, cracked the roster out of training camp and has suited up for each of the team’s 12 contests during the 2021-22 season.

Offensive production has been meagre, although he averaged just over 11 minutes a night prior to his promotion Tuesday to a forward unit with centre Andrew Copp and right-winger Nikolaj Ehlers as the Jets battled the St. Louis Blues.

Harkins did not look out of place against the Blues. He had a sensational scoring chance early in the second period but blasted the puck wide of goalie Jordan Binnington and his cage. He also passed up a golden opportunity to shoot in the third period, electing to make a pass that was intercepted.

In the third period, he took a couple of productive turns with Mark Scheifele and Blake Wheeler.

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Harkins has produced only four goals and 11 points in 67 games, including his lone goal of the season on Oct. 16 in a 4-3 road loss to the San Jose Sharks. But to his coach, the former second-round pick (2015) has upgraded his speed to the point where he’s become a viable option, when necessary, to slot in alongside the Central Division squad’s top players.

Paul Maurice said the choice to find a suitable temporary replacement for Stastny was relatively easy.

“Speed, for me. He’s quicker than the other guys,” Maurice said. “He can bring energy and he brings speed. What happens after that for Jansen, we’ll just watch and learn. But that intensity he can play with when he’s at his best, that has to be the standard for him. That’s what we’re working on right now, whether he plays six minutes a night or whether he plays 12 minutes.”

jason.bell@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @WFPJasonBell