Tanev looking forward to post-season crash-filled bash

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This article was published 04/04/2018 (2755 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Brandon Tanev has been a reliable handyman for the Jets and he keeps adding to his toolbox.

So, there must have been some initial fret within the organization when the fast, physical winger went down in a heap after sliding to block a Jeff Petry shot while killing a penalty during Tuesday’s first period in Montreal.

It was difficult to tell whether Tanev was struck in the arm or ribs. Regardless, he was back on the bench to begin the second period. Winnipeg went on to a 5-4 overtime win against the Canadiens.

Not that long ago, the 26-year-old Toronto product was a spare-part player for the Central Division squad but he’s quickly become a key contributor. And the Stanley Cup playoffs have a history of providing a platform for the unlikeliest of heroes to emerge.

He averages almost 13 minutes of ice time a night on the club’s hard-checking fourth line with Adam Lowry and Andrew Copp, yet the trio has been chipping in with some offensive production of its own lately.

Tanev even supplied a hat trick March 27 at home against the Boston Bruins, blowing the roof off Bell MTS Place with his third of the night, a wrap-around, short-handed tally. He added his eighth goal and club-leading third short-handed effort of the season in Monday’s 6-5 win in Ottawa.

But playing a grinding, shut-down role remains the unit’s prime objective with the post-season approaching.

“Playoff hockey is fast and physical. You know the games are going to be harder and that’s something our line cherishes, that style of play,” said Tanev. “We’re getting into the dirty areas of the rink, making it hard on the other teams’ top guys, being physical on pucks, getting traffic in front of the net.

“The coach has a lot of trust in us and that gives us a lot of confidence to do our job every shift. We’ve definitely got some chemistry going.”

•••

Talk about making an entrance.

Not only was it Sami Niku’s first NHL game, the 21-year-old Finnish-born defenceman scored on his first shot — against a slam-dunk future hall-of-fame goalie in Carey Price.

Getting the call-up from the Manitoba Moose was a nice reward for a fantastic AHL rookie season, but expect him to to be reassigned soon as the farm club begins its own playoff push.

Demonstrating skill and confidence, Niku continues to impress all the right people.

“We were talking about anti-freeze in the veins. That’s the way it looked, pretty cool out there,” Jets head coach Paul Maurice said after the Monreal game. “I didn’t think there was an awful lot of risk in his game. Smart plays with the puck and flat passes, but in traffic he didn’t panic with the puck. He moved it pretty efficiently. All the things that a young defenceman has to learn are all teachable. But the skill set that he has is impressive.”

•••

In each NHL city he visits, Patrik Laine is a wanted man by the local press corps.

Microphones and smartphones are constantly shoved in his face and the cameras are stacked up in front of the Jets’ leading goal scorer. But if the ritual is beginning to grate on the young Finn, he doesn’t show it when the questions start flying.

He remains open, engaging and genuinely witty.

In Toronto, he was asked if Tanev’s improbable three-goal performance against the Bruins was one of the highlights of the season.

“For a guy like Tanev, he’s not getting rewarded too many times on the ice, so when that kind of guy gets a hat trick, it’s something unreal. That was (laughing)… I can’t get over that. It was pretty unreal. Everybody was so happy and excited and he earned it.”

In Montreal, a curious scribe wondered if the second-overall pick in the 2016 NHL Draft had any doubts he could be this good, this soon in his career.

“Yeah, I thought so. I knew that I was a pretty good player,” answered Laine. “You don’t really think about those kinds of things when you come into the league. You just want to take your spot on the roster and try to play well every night and prove to your teammates and your team that you’re an NHL player and you can play here.”

Laine ripped his 44th goal to start the scoring against Montreal, snapping a seven-game goal drought.

jason.bell@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @WFPJasonBell