It’s all water under the bridge

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This article was published 18/03/2019 (2455 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

No, Kristian Vesalainen didn’t arrive back in town and instantly lead his team to victory. The opposite, actually, as the Manitoba Moose fell 4-1 Sunday to the San Diego Gulls in Vesalainen’s return to the club.

The 19-year-old wasn’t much of a factor either, with one shot on goal and an even rating while skating on the No. 1 line with top scorers Logan Shaw and Seth Griffith. It was a tough loss for the Moose (30-27-6), who are now four points out of the final Central Division playoff spot with 13 games left in the regular season.

Still, Vesalainen’s presence is being viewed as a big deal around the organization — especially after what appeared to be a significant difference of opinion when the top prospect opted to use an out clause in his contract and go play in the Kontinental Hockey League last November after making the Winnipeg Jets out of training camp, playing five games and then being sent down to the Moose for more seasoning.

It’s no secret the Jets wanted him to stay in North America to develop on the farm and be ready to help the big club should injuries arise. But if there were any hard feelings, they appear to be water under the bridge now.

“It was good all the time, so I didn’t worry about that. Because they accepted the contract how it was. So I don’t know why there would be something,” Vesalainen said following Sunday’s game at Bell MTS Place.

He’s had a whirlwind week, as his Jokerit club was eliminated in the playoffs by the Moscow Dynamo. He had one goal in six playoff games after putting up six goals and 11 assists in 31 regular-season games with his hometown Finnish team.

“Hard to come back, and first game with this team for a long time, so that was obviously a little bit tough. But hopefully, it’s going to get better from here,” said Vesalainen, who had three goals and five assists in his eight games with the Moose prior to heading overseas.

Moose coach Pascal Vincent gave the talented winger, selected in the first round of the 2017 draft (24th overall), a passing grade.

“I didn’t mind him at all. I think he kept it simple. I saw in the first period a good forecheck, taking the man. As far as systems, he was fine. As the game went on I thought he got better,” Vincent said.

“He’s a young man that made a decision and for him to be back, the guys were excited actually. He’s a good young man, his attitude was right, he’s excited to be back, the guys were excited, we’re in a push to make the playoffs, they know he’s a good player. So, it was really positive.”

The hope is that Vesalainen will give the Moose a boost as they try to sneak into a playoff spot. Manitoba has been hot of late, especially at home where they were an incredible 15-1-2 in the past 18 games prior to Sunday’s loss.

Veteran forward Ryan White said there’s no hard feelings towards Vesalainen despite the fact he chose to leave the Moose earlier in the season, only to return now for the stretch drive.

“As a young player, first-round pick, you get some options to pick where you want to play. At a young age, it’s nice to play at home I think. I thought he was OK (Sunday), I thought he got better as the game went on. I’m sure if you ask him, it was probably tough jumping in right away. This is real hockey here right now, this is playoff hockey,” said White, a veteran of 313 NHL games who scored Manitoba’s only goal against San Diego.

“It’ll take him a little bit but he’ll figure it out. He’s a big boy, a good player, we’ll just try to help him along here. I’m sure he’s a bit tired, travelling all week and time change and all that. We’ll just get him going at practice here (today) and I’m sure he’ll help us down the stretch.”

One thing to watch is whether Vesalainen gets another look with the Jets this year. With five NHL games under his belt (no goals, one assist), he would burn a year of his entry-level contract should he play five more games, either in the regular season or playoffs. And that’s a big deal, because it would mean he’s not exempt when the Seattle expansion draft happens in the summer of 2021. That means the Jets would have to use a spot to protect him.

“I don’t have any expectation. I just want to play and help (the Moose) go to the playoffs and we’ll see what happens after that,” said Vesalainen, who has no regrets about how this season has played out.

“It was my decision to go, so I don’t regret anything. Why should I think something like that after I went there?” he said. “It gave me a lot of new things there. The rink was a little bit bigger, so that was a little bit tough to get used to again. But all in all, it was a good experience for me.”

Jets head coach Paul Maurice said Vesalainen’s return is a win-win for everyone.

“It’s good for him and it’s good for the Moose. Boy, they’ve done a great job. They had a real struggle with injuries and we stole all their players at the start of the year. To battle back the way that they have, I know Pascal feels he’s got a great culture in his room. He’s got really good men and they’re playing hard for each other,” Maurice said on Saturday.

“So, that’s a wonderful place for a guy to come back in and kind of start, he’s been a pro hockey player, but to kind of start his North American pro career, it’s a really good environment to play and get the excitement of a real strong playoff push here. If you get in, what a great experience for him, and then at some point, he’s available to us.”

The Moose finish off a six-game homestand on Tuesday night with a re-match against San Diego (32-20-6).

POOLMAN INJURED: Sunday’s loss may have been a costly one for the Moose, as top defenceman Tucker Poolman left in the second period with a lower-body injury. Poolman has been playing his best hockey of the season lately, prompting Vincent to say last week he’s “in the wrong league.” Poolman has three goals and 19 assists in 37 games with the Moose this season. He missed seven weeks with a concussion earlier in the year.

“It’s lower-body. Happened in the first period, I don’t know yet what’s going to happen there. He tried to play with what happened but couldn’t push,” Vincent said following the game.

KOVACEVIC SIGNED: Defenceman Johnathan Kovacevic will join the Moose for the rest of the season after finishing up his collegiate career. The 21-year-old, selected in the third round of the 2017 draft (74th overall), spent the past three years at Merrimack College. He had four goals and 14 assists in 31 games and was voted the team’s most valuable player this season. He has signed a two-year entry-level contract with the Jets that begins next season.

mike.mcintyre@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @mikemcintyrewpg