The first weekend of the pre-season is now in the rearview mirror for the Winnipeg Jets, and as much as surprises have been minimal to this point, a few things were learned about a couple of new faces in the mix.
Hands up, Jets Nation, if before training camp began last Thursday, you could have held your own in a trivia contest on the pro careers of forward Mason Shaw and defenceman Haydn Fleury.
Take Shaw, for example. The 25-year-old from Wainwright, Alta., endured four major knee surgeries during his six years with the Minnesota Wild. If Ville Heinola is in need of a “big brother” who has been there, done that when it comes to battling through the latest setback for the young Finnish defenceman, there’s no doubt Shaw can be that guy.
And while Shaw committed the turnover that led to Minnesota’s fifth goal on Saturday night, he also blocked a shot on the PK, won some key defensive zone faceoffs, and even dropped the mitts.
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As head coach Scott Arniel said afterwards, the versatile forward “played to his identity.”
And then there was Fleury. The Saskatchewan-born, Edmonton area-raised rearguard was not only playing his first game in more than five-and-a-half months on Saturday night after getting injured in an accidental collision with referee Steve Kozari in early April, but he was also suiting up just after the birth of his second son earlier that same day.
The veteran blue liner was given the option of taking the weekend off — but was having none of it. And following the latest misfortune for Heinola, the 28-year-old former No. 7 overall pick by Carolina is now very much in the conversation for a starting job in the D rotation.
While neither of these Prairie boys figures to make or break the fortunes of the Winnipeg Jets this season, both should be more than capable of making contributions that strengthen the depth, the character, and the culture of the organization.
