Connor reaches 500 NHL points, continues hot streak to start season with Jets

DETROIT -- Kyle Connor said he doesn’t set statistical goals, because he doesn’t want to put limits on himself.

“I try not to think about it at all,” he said.

Who knows what he could accomplish?

The forward had a goal and two assists in the Winnipeg Jets’ 6-2 victory against the Detroit Red Wings at Little Caesars Arena on Wednesday, reaching 500 NHL points and tacking on two more.

On a 10-game point streak -- the Jets/Atlanta Thrashers record to open a season, and tied for his personal best at any point -- he’s tied for second in the NHL in goals with nine and for third in points with 17.

“Sometimes you’re rolling,” he said. “You can kind of get into a groove, especially when we’ve got these games every other day, it seems like.”

Could Connor reach 50 goals in a season for the first time? How about 100 points?

The 27-year-old has scored more than 30 goals six times and produced more than 60 points five times, setting NHL career highs in goals (47) and points (93) in 2021-22. Since 2017-18, his first full NHL season, he’s eighth in the League in goals (250) and tied for 25th in points (497).

“I like watching him play,” Red Wings center J.T. Compher said. “I always know when he’s on the ice when I’m playing against him, and I know that he doesn’t need a lot of space to find the back of the net. He’s definitely a great hockey player, and he seems to continue to get better.”

It was fitting Connor put on a show in front of friends and family here. He grew up in the Detroit suburbs shooting at least 100 pucks per day in the garage, leaving marks on the concrete and cinderblocks.

He spent one season at the University of Michigan, leading NCAA Division I in goals (35) and points (71) in 2015-16.

“You could kind of see it in practice at Michigan right away,” said Compher, one of his linemates then. “He kind of could score from any spot. He could score from wherever the puck got to him. He found a way to get the puck in the right spot.

“Like, his shot placement’s elite. His release, I would call it sneaky. It’s not super fancy -- like, toe drag, shot. It’s sneaky. It’s really quick, and it’s heavy enough, and it’s always in the right spot.”

Connor spends the offseason in the Detroit area skating with fellow NHL players, including Jets goalie Connor Hellebuyck, New Jersey Devils center Jack Hughes and Red Wings forwards Andrew Copp, Alex DeBrincat and Dylan Larkin.

“I love watching him in the summer, and I love keeping tabs on him throughout the year,” Hughes said. “I think he’s got a really tricky release. Like, he can overpower a goalie and beat him just by blowing one right by him, but also he can score five-hole, score on the breakaways. I think he’s a guy that just scores a lot of different ways, and that’s probably why he scores so many goals.”

Copp said Connor “can put the puck in the net almost unlike anything you’ve ever seen, just with his very unique release.” Larkin said Connor’s release is so quick he beats goalies when they’re not expecting it -- off the hip, off the shoulder, through the arm -- doing things “once a skate where you’re just like, ‘Wow.’”

“It’s definitely impressive to see him consistently put the puck in the net and just how much he scores,” DeBrincat said. “Even in the summer, we’re shooting on Hellebuyck, who’s obviously one of the best goalies in the League and not easy to score on, but some days, he makes it look pretty easy.”

Trying to describe Connor’s release, DeBrincat said: “I think a lot of guys pull in and snap the puck, and he can obviously do that too. But his natural shot is more of a wrist shot, I would say, and he just scores all the time. I think it’s just a little bit different than what I normally see, and he’s so good at it. It’s definitely different to watch but a lot of fun.”

Connor said there is no secret. His stick shaft has an 80 flex, on the whippy end of the spectrum, and his blade has a fairly standard curve. Whenever he tries to tweak things, he goes back to the same specs he’s essentially always had.

“I think it’s just a function of growing up, how I learned to shoot the puck,” he said. “It’s a lot of reps shooting the puck in the garage over and over. Everybody’s got their own unique style of how they do it, and I think just kind of that quick-twitch shot release is my kind of thing.”

Connor has 502 points (252 goals, 250 assists) in 541 games. The sky’s the limit.

“His whole game is really impressive,” Jets defenseman Neal Pionk said. “His shot, obviously. I think everyone sees that. But also his hockey sense too. He’s a pretty good passer. Really impressive.”

Pionk smiled.

“Like we say, he’s only halfway to 1,000,” Pionk said, “so maybe not that impressive.”