Jets' Cole Perfetti adjusting quickly to NHL level thanks to studious nature

WINNIPEG — Cole Perfetti knows the score and that’s because he’s paying attention to what’s going on around him.

The Winnipeg Jets forward is very much in tune with what’s going on with the team he plays for, but he’s an insatiable consumer of the sport, learning not just about his own game but keeping tabs on others around the NHL.

“It’s human nature that you’re curious to see how your peers are doing and how the league is doing,” Perfetti said before boarding a plane for Calgary, where the Jets open a two-game road swing Saturday against a Flames team that is looking to snap a seven-game losing skid (0-5-2).

“I check the game scores of every game every single night because of curiosity and wanting to keep up with the league and see who is doing well and what’s going on. I check the game scores every single night and watch all the highlights every day. I don’t really dwell over it.

“I don’t really care, but I’m up to date and I’m up to date with the whole league. Not just the rookies. I like to know everything. All of the goals, all of the highlights, all of the news on each team. I try to stay up with that and stay relevant within the league. You see everyone.”

What Perfetti doesn’t care about specifically is the rookie points chase that he’s right in the middle of with guys like Matty Beniers of the Seattle Kraken, Shane Pinto of the Ottawa Senators, Matias Maccelli of the Arizona Coyotes, JJ Peterka of the Buffalo Sabres, Mason MacTavish of the Anaheim Ducks, Kent Johnson of the Columbus Blue Jackets and a host of others who remain within striking distance.

Of course, he is aware of that as well, he’s simply not going to be bogged down on it or spend much time worrying who people might be projecting to win the Calder Trophy at the quarter point or halfway points of the season.

He’s got more important things to spend his time on as he continues the adjustment to becoming an NHL regular.

“You want to play as good as you can, to play your best game and I feel like I’m playing pretty strong. I’m able to produce, our line is producing and our team is winning, that’s the main thing,” said Perfetti. “We’ll see what happens with everything else.”

Going into this season, it was clear the Jets were trying to straddle that fine line between counting on Perfetti for production that was closer to primary than complementary while also not putting too much pressure on him to pile up points.

For a guy who has yet to celebrate his 21st birthday, Perfetti has a maturity and perspective that most young players are trying to get a handle on, so the winger with excellent vision just went out and won the job that was available to him as long as he held up his end of the deal.

“I knew there were spots to be on the team. You never know what the lineup is going to be,” said Perfetti, who has three goals and eight points in 12 games as the Jets jumped out to an 8-3-1 start. “I talked to the coaches a little bit in the summer and kind of (knew) what they expected from me for the summer and what they wanted me to come into camp like.

“But when I got here, you have to earn a spot and make the team. There were no promises. This is the NHL. Obviously, they said there is an opportunity to be taken and now it’s up to you to go take it to have that job. You want the chance and that’s all you can ask for.”

To this point, Perfetti has done everything in his power to reward the coaching staff for showing the confidence to put him on a line with Pierre-Luc Dubois and Blake Wheeler when training camp began.

Of course, there are going to be some growing pains, but Perfetti is handling the ups and downs of the season well.

Because he’s not in the category of being a burner when it comes to his skating, Perfetti occasionally leans on his smarts and anticipation to help level the playing field.

For someone with just 30 NHL games on his resume, Perfetti is in that interesting position of working to speed up the pace of his game while also allowing the game to slow down as well when it comes to the decision-making process and trusting his internal clock to hold onto the puck and make the plays that are available to him.

That’s not necessarily easy to do in real time.

“Obviously, it’s the NHL so it’s so, so fast but when you get more comfortable and you get more confident making plays in certain areas,” said Perfetti, who is averaging 15:47 of ice time per game and plays an important role on the Jets’ second power-play unit. “The big thing is realizing the dead areas and where you can go to relieve pressure, what you can do and what you can get away with in certain spots. The D close quickly in this league. In the AHL and in junior hockey, they don’t close as quickly, so you could do more stuff at the blue line and do more stuff in the corners and get away with it.

“Here, you have to get it off your stick quicker and get to open ice and I feel like I’m just learning where those areas are, what I can do and just continuing to grow.”

Because of his studious nature, Perfetti has spent a lot of time talking to his coaches and teammates about the things he needs to do when the puck isn’t on his stick as well.

Jets head coach Rick Bowness has been encouraging Perfetti to utilize his offensive gifts, while also trying to establish a high standard of defensive play.

“If you watch him, he’s working very hard without the puck. He’s far more aware of his responsibilities without the puck, but what that translates into is more offence,” said Bowness. “He’s getting the puck more. He’s not standing around waiting for the puck to come to him. There’s times that he’s going to get it and he’s done a much better job of that — of playing the game and not waiting for the game to come to him.”

Perfetti was on the receiving end of some bone-jarring checks early this season, several of which were right on the numbers, but he’s done a good job of putting himself in better spots on the ice while continuing to enter the high-traffic areas and not shy away from contact.

“These are grown men, big boys and they’re finishing their checks,” said Perfetti. “If you establish your back to them for a while, obviously they can’t hit you, but you can’t turn away from it and just assume that you’re not going to get hit.

“Guys are finishing their checks and coming with a lot of speed, so if you put yourself in a vulnerable spot, it’s on you and on the hitter. It’s kind of a two-way street. I’m just trying to put myself in better spots and not be in that three feet, dangerous area away from the boards with my back and spin on a guy and expect him to not hit me or let up. You’ve got to be able to brace yourself a little more and put yourself in better spots. We went over that with the coaches and I’m doing a better job with that.”

NOTES: Bowness said Jets forward Nikolaj Ehlers would not travel with the team and the hope is that he will return to the ice next Tuesday or Wednesday. “It’s not like he had a setback. It’s more us being very cautious, so he doesn’t have that setback,” said Bowness. He’s coming along, but rather than force it and putting him out there a day too early, we’ll take the cautionary route with him.” ... The Jets recalled winger Mikey Eyssimont from the Manitoba Moose of the American Hockey League on Friday. He’ll be on hand as an insurance policy with the team scheduled to play games on consecutive days. Eyssimont had a strong training camp with the Jets and has two goals and nine points in nine AHL games with the Moose this season.