A rather full Moose contingent hit the ice for practice today out at the IcePlex as they spend the week getting ready to face divisional opponent Rockford in a pair of games which are set to begin on Friday. That could has changed due to the snowmaggedon blizzard that is expected to wallop Manitoba starting tonight with the team announcing that the game has been moved to Sunday, April 17th at 2 PM.
Lines:
Suess – Gustafsson – Malott
Polei – Maier – Jones
Lynch – Meireles – Poganski
Vesalainen – Johnson – Hutchinson
D: Kovacevic, Lundmark, Heinola, Gawanke, Chisholm, Oligny, Stewart & Phillips
Extras: Egle & Burgess
Non-contact: Reichel and Caron.
Practice notes:
It was a good sign this morning that Declan Chisholm, who has been out since suffering a lower-body injury against Iowa on March 20th, was wearing a regular uniform as was Greg Meireles who has been out since March 12th. I can’t see Kristian Reichel wearing yellow for very much longer as he didn’t appear to be hampered by the shot he blocked in the Jets game against the Flames back on February 21st. And lastly David Gustafsson was wearing a regular uniform which means he is out of covid protocol.
Prospect update:
Moose head coach Mark Morrison confirmed that recently signed Jets prospects Henri Nikkanen and Daniel Torgersson (who signed PTOs with the Manitoba for this season) will be with the team tomorrow. I guess the province really wanted them to experience a White Out after all.
Health update:
Morrison said that Kristian Reichel looked “really good” out there and his expectation is that the hard-working winger would transition into a normal jersey tomorrow. Also Declan Chisholm declared himself ready to go and ready to return to the lineup.
Celebrating each other’s accomplishments:
Jeff Malott said the Moose team were out last night for dinner celebrating David Gustafsson’s bday when they saw Morgan Barron’s first goal with the Jets. Said it got quite the reaction from the group. That is just emblematic of what we have seen and heard from this team since last season and continuing into this one.
Player availability:
Coach availability:
Topics:
1) Clinching a playoff spot over the weekend.
2) Lineup decisions getting tougher with all the healthy bodies returning.
3) Plan for Jets prospects Henri Nikkanen and Daniel Toregersson.
4) How does it work integrating new players.
5) Having seven players making their NHL debut this season.
6) The players being genuinely happy for each other.
7) What is the plan for Kristian Reichel?
Up next:
The Moose will take practice downtown tomorrow as they now prepare for their next game which is scheduled for Saturday at 2 PM and not Friday anymore with the AHL announcing that this game will now be played on Sunday.
