Why Calle Jarnkrok is finally enjoying camp despite uncertain future

TORONTO — So what if Calle Järnkrok finds himself on the NHL bubble for the first time in a dozen years?

At least he’s healthy and having fun. 

Which is something the 718-game veteran could not say at any point during a tentative and tortured 2024-25 — his least active and most painful season to date.

Järnkrok’s lineup spot is in doubt in light of the Toronto Maple Leafs’ off-season influx of middle-six forwards. The waiver wire and/or the trade block and/or the pressbox all remain threats. The Leafs and the responsible utility forward have engaged in zero extension talks ahead of his contract year.

And yet, Järnkrok can smile with ease standing outside the Maple Leafs practice facility on a warm September morning, his kids off to school and another hard, pain-free skate in the books.

“It’s way more fun, to start. Just to be able to skate and work with no pain,” Järnkrok tells Sportsnet.ca, before reflecting on how a damaged groin and excruciating sports hernia derailed his 2024 training camp. 

“It wasn’t good. It was hard to skate. Just tough. When every stride bothers you, it’s tough to play hockey.”

So, he didn’t.

Järnkrok arrived in town last fall already ailing, his angry midsection hindering his summer training. He tried pushing through and false-started his pre-season a couple times before surrendering to surgery and a lengthy rehabilitation.

Even when he was cleared to return in March, he was jumping on a speeding train and never fully pulled himself aboard. He scored just one goal in 19 regular-season games, none in a dozen post-season outings.

He says now that he was never close to 100 per cent in March or April or May — or June, for that matter. 

Physical pain takes a mental toll.

“It was tough, you know, trying to stay positive, trying to get back out there with the guys,” Järnkrok says. “Even at the beginning of the summer, I didn’t feel great.”

Järnkrok vacationed in Greece shortly after the Leafs were eliminated, but his body didn’t feel at peace with hockey until July, when he began training back home in Gävle, Sweden, with his cousin and Capitals legend Nicklas Backstrom.

“I started to feel normal again, which was such a relief. Just getting back on the ice with no pain, it was huge,” Järnkrok says.

“Last summer, I didn’t do much. It’s been huge just training normal, like I’ve been used to. I put on some weight, put some muscle on. Just had a great summer.”

A great summer has blossomed into an impressive fall, with Järnkrok showing great jump through Week 1 of training camp, impressing coach Craig Berube in Sunday’s pre-season outing in Ottawa, and establishing himself as a viable option should a winger like Matias Maccelli, Bobby McMann, Easton Cowan, or Nick Robertson not a) stay healthy and b) seize hold of a role.

“You can see it,” says teammate John Tavares, after taking rushes with Järnkrok Thursday. “You can see that he just feels good. He’s not worrying about: How am I going to feel today? Am I sore? What are my limitations? He can just go out there and be the player that he is.

“He’s shown how effective he can be, how under the radar he is. Just play anywhere in your lineup and do so many things really, really well — and so easy to play with. So, yeah, it was nice being out there with him today. Just a true veteran, and good to see him back.”

Berube says Järnkrok is off to a great camp: “His work ethic and practice habits are exceptional. He looks like a good Järny.”

Whether it was the nagging injury or cold reality that comes with age, Järnkrok sounds like an athlete who is savouring what’s left — but wants to prolong it past his current contract’s expiry in 2026.

As a 12th or 13th forward, Järnkrok’s versatility endears him more to the coaching staff than, perhaps, fifth-line centre David Kämpf. But Järnkrok’s $775,000 base salary also makes his contract a more movable one to a team with cap space and in need of that defensively sound skater.

You believe Järnkrok when he tells you he hasn’t even thought about his next contract, that he’s just focused on playing the sport he loves “as long as possible, as long as I can.”

So, what has the message been from management to a respected player in a precarious position? 

“Not much, to be honest. I’m here just trying to do my best. Have some fun out there. You never know when it's gonna end. I’m not getting any younger,” Järnkrok says. 

He’s smiling, though, through the uncertainty. It doesn’t hurt so bad. 

“Yeah, we have a lot of guys. And, I mean, competition is always good," he says. "It’s good for the team. Like I said, I'm having fun right now. I don't know what’s going to happen. Just have to wait and see.”