Small trade pays big dividends

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This article was published 12/11/2021 (1449 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Winnipeg made a significant player move Thursday night, a one-for-one swap intended to ignite the abnormally unproductive Nikolaj Ehlers, Mark Scheifele and Blake Wheeler.

It came with neither salary-cap considerations nor the need for league paperwork.

The internal trade was orchestrated by Jets head coach Paul Maurice to alter the fortunes of three of the squad’s perennially key producers

He flipped Ehlers for left-winger Adam Lowry midway through a battle with the visiting San Jose Sharks. Ehlers joined Scheifele and Wheeler, while Lowry reconnected with Andrew Copp but stayed on the wing, while Jansen Harkins skated on the right side.

The Western Conference clubs were tied 1-1 at the time. Dividends were immediately paid, as defenceman Nate Schmidt scored from a wicked point blast at 14:11 of the second period, with Wheeler drawing an assist. All three forwards earned a plus-one on the play. Five minutes later, Harkins converted a great feed from Lowry on a two-on-one break, with Copp earning the second assist.

Shrewd coaching, coincidence or a few strokes of good luck? Take your pick.

Asked for his rationale on making the slight, in-game alteration, Winnipeg’s bench boss first stated he wanted a better matchup against the Sharks’ forward units before providing the highly anticipated answer.

“We put them together, win the game, Copper gets two points,” Maurice said, following Friday’s practice. “I’d like to see Nikky and Scheif and Wheels just to get their games going a little bit, see if they can generate something. Change the look.”

The combinations will be employed Saturday night when the Jets (7-3-3) host the streaking Los Angeles Kings (8-5-1), who will be out to secure an eighth straight victory. Pierre-Luc Dubois’ trio featuring sizzling sniper Kyle Connor and Evgeny Svechnikov remains intact, as does a gritty fourth unit of Riley Nash, Dominic Toninato and Kristian Vesalainen.

Winnipeg has picked up points in 10 of their last 11 outings, despite a dearth of scoring from Wheeler and Scheifele. The veteran forwards have yet to score this season, although both missed games owing to COVID-19 and have been slow to rediscover some touch around the net.

The Jets captain has none in eight contests, while Scheifele has been shut out in seven.

Each has been afforded some golden opportunities lately to snap the slumps, including Scheifele’s shot overtop a gaping net in the second period of the Jets’ 2-0 loss at home to the New York Islanders and Wheeler’s breakaway in the second period that was scuttled by Sharks goalie James Reimer.

“I can’t remember a time in a long time, maybe ever, where I’ve had just great, Grade-A opportunities, breakaways, alone in the slot, chances that I normally bury,” said Wheeler. “So, I rely on the 14 years of being productive in this league and bring a lot of excitement about the fact that we’ve got a good team and we’re playing well. Certainly, it’s not the first time in my career I’ve gone eight games without scoring a goal. It gets magnified when there’s a zero attached to the stat line, which will get taken care of in short order.”

In fact, one can look as recently as last spring (March 29-April 28) to locate an eight-game scoring slump for the 35-year-old Minnesota product, who finished the 2020-21 season with 15 tallies in 50 contests. Scheifele registered 21 goals in 56 games, despite a seven-game drought from Feb. 27 to March 13.

“It’s a fair observation to look at stats and say they are what they are. I don’t think playing with Adam Lowry has restricted our offence at all …it’s just the hands aren’t quite there,” said Wheeler. “You miss a few breakaways and these Grade-A chances, you start to lose that feel of what it feels like to miss the goalie instead of hit the goalie.”

Alongside Lowry, the duo played big minutes against the other teams’ most dynamic forwards and had to begin many shifts with faceoffs in their own end. Scheifele (-2) and Wheeler (-1) are Winnipeg’s only forwards not on the plus side, yet disparaging their defensive work while lamenting their offensive infertility would — for now, at least — be piling on.

“Certainly, I know that part of my job is to be productive. I think as I’ve gotten more experience in this league, the means justify the ends a little bit more than vice-versa. I think the younger player when you’re trying to establish yourself, sometimes you get caught up looking at the scoresheet,” offered Wheeler.

“Mark and I, we’ve prided ourselves on playing a certain way. There is a heaviness involved to that. There is a lot of hard work involved in that. We take a lot of pride in that game. With that, the production has come. That’s where we’re at right now. We feel good about 98 percent of our game. Unfortunately, the other two per cent of the game is where we get judged, which is fair, that’s part of our job.”

“I think Nikolaj Ehlers is one of the most talented offensive players in the league, so anytime you get a chance to play with a guy like that – you’re certainly excited.”

Ehlers has just three goals, although a pair was produced on the same night, eight games and 18 days ago. The great Dane’s speed hasn’t been nearly as apparent over the last week as it was in the first few weeks of the season, although there’s a feeling he might not be as able-bodied as he’d like to be.

The 25-year-old former first-round pick left Monday’s practice early after something “tightened up” but suited up Tuesday and Thursday, earning the second assist on Dubois’ empty-netter in a 4-1 triumph over the Sharks.

Ehlers dismissed any suggestions he’s not physically up to par.

“I mean there’s no excuses. You play, you’re at 100 per cent,” he said. “When I play, I expect myself to play hard, and to play the best I can every single game. It doesn’t matter what’s going on. I feel good and I’m ready to go.”

Contrarily, Paul Stastny will likely miss his third consecutive game after taking a shot to the foot last Saturday in a 2-0 defeat to the visiting New York Islanders.

“We’re just waiting for this thing to get to the point that he feels good enough to put it in a boot and go skate,” said Maurice. “There’s no injury there. I can’t tell you how he’s going to feel (Saturday), so I don’t know when he’s going to be ready.”

jason.bell@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @WFPJasonBell