Perreault skates, closes in on return to active duty

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This article was published 28/04/2018 (2705 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

NASHVILLE — A big hit knocked him out of the playoffs before he could barely get his feet wet. Now, Mathieu Perreault is inching closer to a potential return to the Winnipeg Jets lineup, which would give the team yet another valuable option at forward.

Perreault joined several teammates for an optional practice Saturday, and said afterwards he’s gearing up to hopefully play soon.

“I feel good. I’ve been skating for a couple days now. It’s getting there. It’s encouraging. It’s finally starting to feel better, so hopefully in the next week, I’ll be ready to go,” said Perreault, who wore a yellow no-contact jersey at the optional skate. “Right now, the team is playing well, so you don’t feel the urgency to push it. So, I guess we’ll see. Once I feel good, I’ll let the coaches know, and it’s their decision.”

Perreault took a huge hit from Minnesota captain Mikko Koivu in Game 1 against the Wild, then played a couple more shifts before being sidelined the rest of the game. He missed the final four games of that series, plus Friday night’s Round 2 opener against Nashville, which the Jets won.

“That was great. It’s unfortunate — the injury, it’s part of this game. I’d like to be out there and help the team, but I’ve enjoyed watching, the guys have been playing well. It’s been a blast. I’m happy I’m out there skating now,” Perreault said.

He was asked to give a percentage estimate on how healthy he feels right now.

“Yeah, I’d say 80. 85, I like that number,” said Perreault, who wears No. 85.

Pain tolerance is the biggest issue to deal with.

“Yeah, the pain, I’d say. You can always make it a little worse. Up to this point, I don’t think I can really make it worse. So it’s the ability to tolerate the pain,” he said.

Rookie Jack Roslovic stepped in after Perreault went down, and has put up a couple assists. It’s just another example of the impressive depth the Jets enjoy.

“Yeah, good speed, he doesn’t maybe look that speedy out there, but he is really quick. Good hands, great vision,” Perreault said of Roslovic.

Exam time

Winnipeg’s young squad has already passed a few big early tests in the post-season as they advanced to the second round for the first time in franchise history.

You can add another to the list following Friday’s Game 1 victory. After Nashville scored just 1:23 into the third period to cut the lead to 3-1 and wake up their crowd, there was the potential for the already-tilted ice to get even more lopsided.

Instead, Winnipeg buckled down and preserved the lead, adding an empty-net goal to skate away with a 4-1 win.

First-strike capability

A big boost to the Jets so far has been their ability to strike first.

Winnipeg has potted the opening goal in all six playoffs games, going 5-1 to date. They’ve actually scored the first goal in 10 straight games now, dating back to the regular season.

“You get comfortable playing a game. We’ve done a good job of playing with the lead this year, especially on the road, in Game 1 of a series. You want to get off to a good start and take their crowd out of it,” captain Blake Wheeler said Saturday.

“Those little things that can add up in a series.”

Winnipeg scored first in 47 of 82 regular-season games, going an impressive 37-4-6 in that span.

mike.mcintyre@freepress.mb.caTwitter: @mikemcintyrewpg