Josh Morrissey establishes himself with Jets

WINNIPEG -- Winnipeg Jets rookie forward Patrik Laine has been a headline-maker in his first NHL season.
The Jets have another rookie making an impact, but Laine's shadow is so large that defenseman Josh Morrissey is getting scant attention.

The 21-year-old from Calgary, the No. 13 pick of the 2013 NHL Draft, has quietly forged a top-four role on the Jets defense. Averaging 18:34 of ice time per game, Morrissey has played almost exclusively with veteran Dustin Byfuglien and seen his time and responsibility increase.
For instance, Morrissey played 22:01 against the Edmonton Oilers on Sunday, the second time this season he's played more than 22 minutes.
A combination of sharp passing, alert puck retrieval, conscientious defense, a healthy dose of competitiveness and a combative streak have opened the door.

"When we talk about compete, more than anything it's about consistency," Jets coach Paul Maurice said. "It's being on every puck, on every play. That's what the great pros do. At the end of the year, they have been better longer.
"You could make an argument that Josh has been our most consistent defenseman. There's a high level of compete, a high level of wired for the games. And when you're playing with [Byfuglien] and playing those minutes, it's often against the other team's better players. So he's had no easy start to the NHL."
After one season in the AHL, Morrissey has capitalized on his opportunity, stepping into the void left when free-agent defenseman Jacob Trouba didn't settle on a contract with the Jets until Nov. 7. Jets defenseman Tyler Myers has been battling a lengthy lower-body injury, having played three games since Oct. 29.
That Morrissey has had few stumbles so far is somewhat surprising.
"I think a little bit," Morrissey said. "I was confident this summer, working with my skills coaches and working out and with my mental coach … but you never quite know how you're going to do until you're there.
"And this is the best league in the world for a reason, and you have to be on your game every day. I'm trying to be consistent every day, to earn the trust to be on the ice."
Morrissey's offensive abilities have been consistent part of his past, but are not yet a priority in the NHL. He has five points (one goal, four assists) in 32 games this season.
"You have to be good defensively," he said. "I think I know I have offensive skills that are there, but what keeps you in the game and the League and getting you ice time is being able to play the other end and make solid plays and be consistent."
Maurice admitted that Morrissey (6-foot, 194 pounds), was probably nearer the edge than the center of his radar during the offseason.

"The question for Josh's development was, 'Would he be able to handle the physical going and was there a willingness there?'" Maurice said. "That's no statement about Josh, it's about all smaller defensemen.
"What we would have listed as areas of growth we hoped for, things he would need to do to become a good defenseman, are now his strengths. He's strong on the puck. He goes to get the puck and uses his speed. He's smart and physical, to the point that he's one of our best at going back and retrieving pucks.
"I am surprised, and you never like to admit that because it sounds like you didn't have faith. Watching him play now, he's so much further along in his development that we could possibly have expected."
And just in case Maurice thought he wasn't reading the signals correctly during training camp, Byfuglien helped confirm Morrissey's swift progress by asking to play with the rookie.
"Dustin Byfuglien very early on took this guy under his wing and he wanted to play with him," Maurice said. "And Dustin's a pretty smart guy. He wants to play with guys that make him better.
"I'm always interested in the veteran players pointing out the kids they like, because they have a keen eye for talent. It happened with Nik Ehlers about two months into being here. It's happened with [Laine] with that shot. And of course Josh."
Byfuglien said the reason for his request was simple.
"He's one of those players that has a good vision of the game," Byfuglien said. "There's a reason he's here. For a young kid to come in and right out of the gate be thrown in there for big minutes, it shows his ability to see the game and move the puck. And he moves it smoothly. He's kind of like [Enstrom] back there, not real big but sees the game really well and it helps him get away with that size."
Byfuglien sees himself as mentor and teammate.
"You tell him a few things about how you play and he kind of knows my role out there and he reads it," Byfuglien said. "And I've told him not to be afraid to make a mistake. It's a long season and there are a lot of games left and everyone's going to make a mistake sooner or later. You can't let things get to you. You let it go and move onto the next shift."
Morrissey's path to Winnipeg has included playing for Canada at two World Juniors, winning gold and being named a tournament all-star in 2015. He had strong numbers in the Western Hockey League playing for Prince Albert and Kelowna (196 points in 249 career junior games), plus a WHL championship with Kelowna in 2015.
As a junior, Morrissey was named the Canadian Hockey League's scholastic player of the year in 2012-13, carrying a 92.4 percent average in high school.
"He's one intelligent guy," said Shane Hnidy, former NHL defenseman and analyst on TSN. "And it's been showing. On the ice and off."
What raised the bar more significantly in Morrissey's case was his play in the spring of 2014. After his junior season had ended, he joined the St. John's of the American Hockey League for eight games at the end of the regular season, becoming a key player for its run to the AHL's championship series. This at the age of 19, and with a full year of junior eligibility remaining. St. John's lost to Texas in five games in the Calder Cup Final.
Morrissey then struggled at training camps with the Jets in 2014 and 2015, before his breakthrough this past September.
"Josh has to get all the credit for this," Maurice said. "He's worked really hard to make himself stronger each year. Two years ago, he probably made the young mistake of trying to put on weight and he came to camp slower. These weren't failures, these were things that junior kids try to do.
"He came back this year after having a year of pro, and that makes a big difference in understanding the game, having taken the feedback to heart about the areas he needed to improve and he put a huge focus on it and it's now a strength.
"He's a case study that nobody can predict development easily or with certainty."
Like the clean breakout plays he's been executing frequently, Morrissey sees that clearly now.
"Those last few years, I felt I put too much pressure on myself, that I was too nervous," he said. "It's part of the growing process. A young guy, in his first NHL games, you're around NHL players and I definitely was more nervous and put more pressure on myself than this last camp.
"Other years, I was more looking ahead as opposed to just being in the moment and focusing on the day. This time, I didn't put too much pressure on myself that when you make a mistake, you're gripping the stick too tight because you feel that'll be the axe coming down."