Thursday could be night for Perreault’s return

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This article was published 15/11/2017 (2859 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Soon the time will come — it might well be tonight — when the convalescing is over and Mathieu Perreault returns to regular duty for the Winnipeg Jets.

Therein lies the minor dilemma for Paul Maurice and his coaching staff, who must do some tinkering with a roster that, for the first time since the franchise moved north from Atlanta, most closely resembles an upper-echelon NHL squad.

The Jets (10-4-3), who have won six of their past eight, host the Philadelphia Flyers (8-8-2) tonight at Bell MTS Place. Game time is 7 p.m.

Who comes out of the lineup? Which individual from either the third or fourth lines pays the price, not specifically because of performance but more due to simple mathematics, as Maurice can only dress 18 skaters.

“(We) could have to make a decision to take somebody out. Matty’s indicated to me that he’d like to be a player in the next game,” Maurice said following Tuesday night’s 4-1 victory over the Arizona Coyotes. “Barring anything unusual, I’ll have to make a decision. If Matty’s ready to go, I’m going to put him into the lineup.”

Expect Kyle Connor to stick with the Jets’ offensive leaders, centre Mark Scheifele and right-winger Blake Wheeler, while a second line of Bryan Little, Patrik Laine and Nikolaj Ehlers will likely remain untouched.

Perreault is likely destined for a spot on the third line, where fourth-year centre Adam Lowry has been a solid performer, scoring a pair of goals in four games since returning from an injury. Linemates Andrew Copp and Brandon Tanev have checked effectively and created some scoring opportunities while excelling on a penalty-killing unit that’s efficiency is trending upward.

“The way (Copp) scored the first one (against Arizona), just driving it to the net. They had a lot of good offensive-zone time early in the game again. Really good on the puck battle for (Lowry’s) goal,” Maurice said. “So, they were playing it the right way, there’s some good chemistry there and, at times, they also have to go and play against the other team’s best when Scheifele’s line is not doing that job. It looks like they’ve got something going on there.”

On the fourth line, centre Matt Hendricks and Joel Armia both have hit the scoresheet lately. Hendricks has also been a key contributor on a PK-unit that has killed off nine straight shorthanded situations.

One of either Armia or Shawn Matthias, who has gone 16 games without a goal, could be the odd man out when Perreault returns and Tanev presumably drops down a rung.

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The Jets had the day off Wednesday, while the Flyers had an afternoon skate at Bell MTS Place.

There’s a strong Manitoba connection on the visiting squad, including injured centre Nolan Patrick and winger Dale Weise, both of Winnipeg, and 21-year-old defenceman Travis Sanheim of Elkhorn.

Selected by Philadelphia in the first round (17th overall) in the 2014 NHL draft, Sanheim had three terrific seasons with the Calgary Hitmen of the Western Hockey League and spent the 2016-17 campaign with the Flyers’ AHL affiliate, the Lehigh Valley Phantoms, scoring 10 goals and adding 27 assists.

Offensively gifted and a strong, smooth skater, Sanheim is playing about 16 minutes a night on the team’s third pairing with Radko Gudas.

Right now, he’s living the dream but it’s come with some expected growing pains, he said.

“Early on, there was (nerves) but just the last couple of weeks I’ve started to settle in and find my game,” said Sanheim, who has two assists. “When I was drafted, there was lots to learn and I played two more years of junior and that one year of pro to develop my game and play against men and battle against those guys. I think it set myself up good for this year.

“Every night’s a new challenge. The skill in this league is incredible and if you’re not ready to go at the puck drop, you’re going to be in trouble.”

jason.bell@freepress.mb.ca Twitter: @WFPJasonBell