MW_PerfettsJan28

WINNIPEG - Cole Perfetti had just finished FaceTiming his parents on Wednesday when he got a phone call from Winnipeg Jets general manager Kevin Cheveldayoff.
"He said I was going to be joining the taxi squad and skating tomorrow. It's one step closer to the dream and another step in the process," Perfetti said on Thursday.
"It was an awesome feeling."
The 19-year-old took part in his first official NHL practice at Bell MTS Place after he was recalled from the Manitoba Moose and assigned to the Jets taxi squad.
"I was just trying to take it all in as soon as I stepped on the ice. You're playing with guys in the National Hockey League and some of the best players in the world," said Perfetti.
"That was my first skate in the NHL. I'll never forget that."

He didn't have a short day, either.
The 10th overall pick in October's 2020 NHL Draft took part in the one-hour formal part of practice, then stayed on the ice with the taxi squad (Perfetti, Kristian Vesalainen, Ville Heinola, Dominic Toninato, Nelson Nogier, Sami Niku, Dylan Samberg, and Anton Forsberg) for another hour.

Cole Perfetti's First Practice

One thing stood out to Perfetti over the 120 minutes he was on the ice.
"Passes are always on the tape, they're crisp and they're hard. That improves the flow of practice. You get through your drills quicker. It allows for less skating and less work when you play like that and are efficient with the puck," said Perfetti.
"Here, everyone is so smart and so good that there isn't as much teaching. Most of that learning comes in the video. It's just execution on the ice. At this level, everyone executes pretty high."
Jets head coach Paul Maurice was eager to see Perfetti skate with the Jets, adding that this three-day block between games was the ideal time to have that happen.
"This is a really smart, very competitive young man with a great set of hands. He's carrying around a big hockey brain there," said Maurice. "He fit into those drills, he got them right - more importantly the nuances of the drill and what we were trying to accomplish with each drill, he just went out and did it."
A prospect's first practice is always memorable. Like Perfetti, Jets veteran Josh Morrissey was also picked in the first round.
"It brings back memories of my first opportunity to skate with the big guys," said Morrissey. "He looked pretty good. You can see the skill and ability. You can see all the attributes as to why he was drafted where he was."
He remembers coming into his first camp and how quickly his mindset changed.
"You get drafted and it's like 'I'm making the team this year as an 18-year-old.' Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't," said Morrissey.
"As a 19-year-old it's the same thing. As a 20-year-old it' the same thing. It took me until my fourth training camp until I was ready to make that jump. Everyone is on their own path."
Practice time will be at a premium during this season's condensed schedule.
A good example of this lies with the Jets power play. The current first unit - Morrissey, Mark Scheifele, Blake Wheeler, Paul Stastny, and Kyle Connor - had one practice together prior to the Jets heading on a three-game road trip.
That was back on Jan. 17. Winnipeg has played six games since that day with just three days between them. Those days become a balance of rest versus getting on the ice for a shorter practice to work on a small number of in-game situations, or simply just to get the legs moving.
Yesterday, the Jets had a scheduled off day. They now have two full days of practice before continuing a seven-game home stand against the Vancouver Canucks on Saturday.
However, Scheifele, Stastny, and Wheeler weren't on the ice for practice Thursday, so the power play work gets pushed to another day. Maurice said the trio was kept off the ice for maintenance purposes and are expected on the ice Friday.
Morrissey was on the ice, though, and just as he does every practice - he came out with a goal in mind. Today, it was getting his stick on the puck - whether to break up plays or deflect pucks out of dangerous areas - while earlier in the season, it was something else.
"You can watch your shifts and watch your game and see some trends," said Morrissey. "In the first couple games I felt I was a little excited to jump up. So I tried to calm that down a little bit coming out of our own end, just stay underneath in puck support."

Whether it's a player like Morrissey, who has 295 NHL games under his belt, or Logan Stanley - who just played his sixth - any amount of time on the ice is important.
"A day like today is great to get up and down the ice, feel the puck a little bit, and get our legs going," said Stanley.
"Today and tomorrow will be good for us and will get us ready for Saturday night."
It's all part of learning to be a pro. Doing everything possible to ensure each time on the ice - whether it's practice or a game - is the best it can possibly be.
Even though it's only been one day in the NHL for Perfetti, that lesson was front and centre.
"When I came in, every single player was in the gym, or in the training room getting treatment, or working out, or stretching," he said. "Doing something to prepare their body to be the best that it can be in recovery for the following days.
"As soon as I walked in, I noticed it right away. They talk about it, but you don't really realize it until you see it first-hand."
He hasn't heard if his first NHL game is on the horizon, but he's not concerned about it. He wants to be a "sponge" and soak in as much as he can.
"If I get a game or don't get a game, just practicing with these guys and being around the rink, it's amazing for me," said Perfetti. "I'm just soaking it in and I'm just thrilled to be here."