Jets enjoying a few days off to rest and reset before Round 2

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This article was published 26/05/2021 (1587 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

To suggest there was a collective sense of relief for the Winnipeg Jets following Monday’s series-clinching 4-3 overtime win over the Edmonton Oilers would be putting it lightly.

On Wednesday, the same day the now-no-longer-necessary Game 5 was to be played at Rogers Place, just the thought of having to travel to Edmonton after battling into a third overtime period days before was enough for forward Andrew Copp to thank the hockey Gods.

“Everyone is thankful we’re not in Edmonton right now doing a pregame skate,” Copp said. “I think everyone is still a little bit tired from the game the other night. You might have taken a little bit of liberty the other night, just in terms of not rushing out of the rink, not rushing to bed. Now it’s catching up on sleep today and tomorrow, then getting into your normal routine for however many days until you play.”

Because the Jets were able to dispose of the Oilers in four straight games, they now get a much-needed few days — and perhaps even longer — as they await the winner between the Toronto Maple Leafs and Montreal Canadiens. The Leafs currently hold a 3-1 edge in the best-of-seven series, with a chance to eliminate the Canadiens in Game 5 Thursday night in Toronto.

Theoretically, if the Leafs win Thursday, a second-round matchup against Winnipeg could begin as early as Saturday. Either way, the plan for the Jets is to take full advantage of the time away from game action — which will be done in a number of different ways, with attention given to on- and off-ice activities.

As Copp alluded to, the Jets were able to linger around the rink into the early hours Tuesday morning, no doubt savouring what many outsiders thought was an improbable sweep. They had their coach’s blessing, though it’s likely the last time they’ll get to do that for some time, at least until another series win.

“I don’t know what time you guys got home (on Monday) but I finished the media at 2:05 a.m., so (Tuesday) was a bit of a write-off,” Jets head coach Paul Maurice told reporters. “We have to come in and test (for COVID-19) every day and it has to be done before noon, so it was a short turnaround. They went home, they came back, and they tested. We did a one-through on the medical (side) today; I think we’re in pretty good shape. But we had 47 shot blocks in Game 4, which means there are a lot of ice bags going around.”

Beyond tending to various bumps and bruises Wednesday, a number of players were back in the gym doing strength work and stretching — what Maurice referred to as maintenance programs. He confirmed no players have skated the last two days, with the team returning to practice on Thursday.

“Our program, in terms of how we want to play, isn’t going to change and isn’t dependent on the opponent, so we’ll start there tomorrow back on the ice and a lot of that will just get them in the rhythm of it,” Maurice added. “Away from the players, we’re just kind of running whatever program we run to pre-scout a team, we’re just doing it twice. We’re looking at both teams very closely. As soon as this is decided, we’ll work back from the day of Game 1, we’ll work back in terms of video and what we do on the ice.”

The Jets spent a majority of their practice time leading up to the series against the Oilers working on various systems at all ends of the ice, with a particular focus on their transition game. There was also a detailed focus on special teams, with the power-play and penalty-killing units getting tweaked, adjustments that would have been made specifically for the Oilers.

Needless to say, the Jets feel grateful for the time off between games, whether it’s a few days or even a week, depending how the other series goes. As for an ideal length for a break, given the rest versus rust debate, they claim it’s really no concern at this point. After all, their playoff experience confirms the situation could always be worse.

“I was talking to someone about that yesterday. I think whatever it ends up being, really you just have to adapt and be ready to go,” Jets defenceman Josh Morrissey said. “We played a series where you had literally one day off, I remember that a few years ago, after the Nashville Game 7 win, staying over in Nashville and flying back the next day and playing game 1, I think was an afternoon game. So, that was a pretty quick turnaround. And then other times you have more rest. So that’s just another thing that’s out of our control.”

There’s been an adjustment off the ice as well. Players are definitely keeping a closer eye on the Toronto-Montreal series, providing a quality opportunity to pre-scout their next opponent.

“I’ve been watching pretty close, I’d say,” Copp said. “And maybe last night I watched differently than I did maybe Game 1 or Game 2, just based on you know that you’re playing the winner and maybe there’s some things that you’re concentrating on. It’s not like I’m watching details and writing notes down. It’s just kind of general things that they do, or maybe little habits that each player has, or whether it’s their line combinations without (John) Tavares… Your mind kind of jumps around from topic to topic when you’re watching the game.”

Another thing to consider is a proper sleep schedule. Maurice said the team’s doctors handle all the technical aspects, but that his staff also takes a keen interest in who is and who isn’t logging enough Zs.

Maurice said the coaches discuss it among themselves in the morning, with almost a sense of relief when someone admits they, too, had a tough time hitting the pillow. They’ve made adjustments in their travel plans to account for sleep patterns, though sometimes that’s completely out of control. Such as Monday, when an 8:45 p.m. start goes into triple overtime.

“And you’re saying that’s great, we just came home from a home game after three o’clock, right? How many days does that usually take before you can get back to being right? That’s usually about three,” Maurice said. “So, a little bit of break in this series, hopefully we’ll be able to get past that. We haven’t had an off day — even on the days we’ve been tired off the road, we’ve never not been able to not bring them to the rink, which in some ways may be a good thing. Now it’s five straight months of coming to the rink to get tested but it gets them out of bed at a regular time. So, we are on top of that as much as we can be. I think we may be in a little bit of sleep debt right now.”

When things get more complex and can’t be handled by the coaching staff, that’s when the experts come in.

“Oh, there’s lots of people, right? There’s lots of doctors, even in the area, our own medical staff,” Maurice said. “I think you’re better off having a doctor do the research than you are doing it yourself. They understand that stuff. So, our medical group here would have strong opinions on how a lot of this should run.”

jeff.hamilton@freepress.mb.ca twitter: @jeffkhamilton