Stanley calls as Dillon serves three-game suspension – Winnipeg Free Press

PHILADELPHIA — Brenden Dillon's big mistake is Logan Stanley's long-awaited layoff.

A healthy scratch for 21 straight games, Stanley is expected to return to the Winnipeg Jets lineup Thursday night in Philadelphia. He replaces Dillon, who was suspended three games for an illegal check on Pittsburgh Penguins forward Noel Acciari in the second period of Tuesday's game.

“Better than him getting hurt, right?” Stanley explained how the opportunity came about on Wednesday. “You don't want to see your teammates get hurt, so we get injury-related (suspension). It will be nice to be on that list.”

On the play in question, Acciari took a direct shoulder to the head, sending his helmet flying and appearing to be knocked out immediately. He then fell face first onto the ice, tried to get up and fell again. Bleeding and disoriented, he had to be helped off the ice and never returned. He is currently in concussion protocol.

The on-ice call was a match penalty for an illegal head check and it was automatically upheld after video review. Unfortunately for the Jets, the Penguins scored twice on the ensuing power play to turn a 1-0 game into a 3-0 lead, which ended up being the final score.

“As the video shows, Acciari slides the puck across the neutral zone as Dillon comes up from the center of the ice and takes off,” begins the NHL's video ruling released Wednesday night.

“As Acciari drove the puck into the Jets zone, Dillon completed a high, hard shot that skipped past Acciari's core, making it the primary point of contact for the shot.

The video further states that Dillon's shoulder makes “direct and strong contact” with Acciari's head, which “absorbs most of the force of the check.” While Acciari admitted that he was leaning forward at the time, he “doesn't change the position of his head or body to be the main point of contact.”

Dillon will miss the game against the Flyers, Saturday's rematch against the Penguins in Winnipeg and next Wednesday's game against the San Jose Sharks at the Canadian Life Centre. He may return on February 17 in Vancouver.

“If Dillon is going to land that punch, he should choose an angle that hits Acciari's shoulder and core, not an angle that makes his head the primary point of contact,” the league concluded.

Stanley, 25, has played in just seven games this season, the last on Dec. 12 at San Jose. Since then, it's been a steady diet of extra skates and press box popcorn on game nights, with the Jets ending up with the same six healthy blueliners. Until now.

“It's tough, but try to work as hard as you can in practice and treat it like a game when you're doing combat drills and stuff like that,” Stanley said of trying to stay sharp and ready. “But, yeah, it's been a while. I hope it doesn't get too rusty.”

Stanley was on the third pair with veteran Nate Schmidt during Wednesday's skate at the Flyers' practice facility in Voorhees. Dylan Samberg moved up to take Dillon's place on the second pairing with Neil Pionk, while the top duo of Josh Morrissey and Dylan DeMelo remained intact.

Stanley, the 18th overall pick in 2016, said he understands why coach Rick Bowness didn't call his name, especially since the Jets have played so well that they've had no road crashes in their past four games. winless (0-3-1).

“I am very happy that the team is doing well. Of course, like every player, I want to play more. But we have a great team and obviously we will win games. We've been healthy all year,” said the 6-7, 231-pound Stanley, who has yet to record a point this season.

“It's something out of my control. What I can control is how hard I work every day. Be a good teammate, stay positive and be there for the rest of the guys.”

When the season started, Stanley was one of two backup defenders along with Declan Chisholm. However, Chisholm was waived a few weeks ago after playing in two games with the Jets. As claimed by the Minnesota Wild, he never made it to the AHL's Manitoba Moose.

That leaves Stanley as the only additional blueliner on the current 23-man roster.

“He did everything he could to prepare for this,” Bowness said.

“Just be confident defensively, don't try to chase the play, don't do too much, make simple plays with the puck and make the game as easy as possible.”

It's worth looking at the situation with Ville Heinola, who not only left the Jets out of training camp, but was also in the opening night lineup (ahead of Schmidt) — he was set to break his ankle in the final preseason game.

Heinola, 22, is now fully healthy and has four points (two goals and two assists) in 10 games with the Elks. General manager Kevin Cheveldyeff said last week that the Finnish defenseman, selected 20th overall in 2019, will return to the Jets soon. He did not claim waivers to come down to the AHL.

If they want it to happen now, they have to make room. The Jets carry two extra forwards in Rasmus Cupari and Dominic Toninato, so giving up one would open up the door. Stanley is also off waivers, and given the way the Jets make personnel decisions around him, it's clear that another team will grab him. Although Dillon will not be able to play, he will remain on the roster while suspended.

A valid argument can be made that Heinola should be far ahead of Stanley on the depth chart and deserves a chance. Only time will tell.

The Jets will certainly miss Dillon's physical presence. When it comes to the Heat, the Jets have taken a different approach than the league.

“The game is fast. Dilly steps up and makes a play. (Acciari) goes off the road at the last second and gets cut. So it's an unfortunate play,” Stanley said.

Dillon's only previous suspension was a one-game suspension in 2017.

“I don't think it's going to change Dilly,” Stanley said. “To play that long … he's a very clean player, he plays the game very hard. So it won't change.”

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Mike McIntyre
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Mike McIntyre grew up wanting to be a professional wrestler. But when this dream failed, he tried his best to become a professional writer.

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