Winnipeg Jets
Coach Scott Arniel stated on Thursday that the prominent center
Mark Scheifele
will not accompany the team before Game 6 against the
St. Louis Blues
.
After missing the second and third periods of his team’s 5-3 win over the Blues in Game 5 of the Western Conference quarterfinals on Wednesday, Scheifele will stay with the Winnipeg team.
Your hope is that perhaps he improves and wakes up today, with everything becoming better,” Arniel said to journalists prior to the team’s journey to St. Louis. “However, at this moment, he will not be joining us on this trip, so we’ll handle each day as it comes from here on out.
At 13:51 of the first period, the Jets were attacking in the Blues’ end when Scheifele passed the puck along the boards. He was immediately hit by the Blues’ captain.
Brayden Schenn
Schiefele seemed focused on the puck and appeared not to notice Schenn, who hit the upper part of Scheifele’s torso and sent him crashing onto the ice.
Schenn received a two-minute penalty for interference and an additional two minutes for roughing.
Just over 10 minutes later, Schiele was part of another physical play. As he approached the Blues’ offensive zone, he engaged with defenseman
Radek Faksa
Also examined him and seemed to have hit Schiefele in the same region as the earlier impact from Schenn.
Scheifele completed the first period, however, Arniel had a discussion with the referees when both teams were heading into the locker room prior to the first intermission. Following the match, Blues coach Jim Montgomery verified with journalists that Arniel addressed the officials regarding the Schenn hit before expressing his own views.
“Let’s be explicit: Fifty-five was injured due to the impact of Faksa,” Montgomery stated. “After experiencing the Schenn hit, he continued playing for about six minutes but did not return following the hard check by Faksa.”
After listening to Montgomery’s remarks, Arniel felt compelled to share his own insights.
“I wasn’t aware that Monty obtained his medical degree, but saying how our player got injured doesn’t add up,” Arniel said to reporters. “Several incidents have occurred during this series, and they’re repeating themselves: A player goes airborne and ends up colliding into another player who’s completely vulnerable. It’s like catching them off guard, nearly taking them out visually. I’m displeased with the officiating decision—a mere two-minute minor penalty—and more so because the incident wasn’t even reviewed.”
We have discussed this with the league over the past five games.
On Thursday, Arniel was questioned about whether Scheifele was in concussion protocol.
“I won’t take that path,” Arniel stated.
It might be likely that the Jets will potentially resort to this strategy again.
Vladislav Namestnikov
Similar to what they accomplished in Game 5, they would promote him to the top line. The player currently positioned as the second-line center would step into Scheifele’s spot on the first line along with him.
Kyle Connor
and
Gabriel Vilardi
.
In the regular season, Namestnikov scored 11 goals and accumulated 38 points across 78 games. However, he truly shone in Game 5 of this year’s playoffs, delivering his best performance yet. During this standout match, he notched one goal and contributed two points overall, playing for 17 minutes and 15 seconds on the ice.
Leave a Reply