Roblin’s Hawryluk happy to have fresh start with Senators

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This article was published 19/02/2020 (1674 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

OTTAWA — The nation’s capital isn’t exactly the Disneyland of the hockey world these days, but Jayce Hawryluk’s joy level is high as he begins a new chapter in his NHL career.

The last few months have, indeed, been a roller-coaster ride for the proud native of Roblin who began his second season in Florida with so much promise but now finds himself in the employ of the Ottawa Senators, a bottom-tier Atlantic Division team in a rebuilding mode.

Hawryluk sincerely wants to be part of the plans.

“I couldn’t be more excited to be joining a young team here and building toward the future. I look to be a big part of that and show them what I am capable of. I feel like I have a lot to give and I’m excited to prove that,” the 24-year-old forward said following the team’s morning skate Thursday.

“Everyone has been amazing so far. I feel super-welcomed and looking forward to playing again and showing them what I’m about.”

Hawryluk made his Ottawa debut Thursday night against the Winnipeg Jets and turned in a couple of feisty shifts with three hits in 12:50 of ice time but also took a high-sticking penalty that led to Mark Scheifele’s second goal of the night.

The Senators claimed Hawryluk off waivers from the Panthers Monday. He had just one goal and a pair of assists in 15 games with Florida this season, missing 28 games over a six-week span due to a shoulder injury suffered Oct. 30 against the Colorado Avalanche.

In mid-December, he was assigned to the Springfield Thunderbirds of the AHL for a conditioning stint and was recalled after the holiday season but couldn’t cement himself in head coach Joel Quenneville’s lineup. He was a healthy scratch some nights and played sparingly in the bottom-six forward group on others.

Hawryluk had provided a major energy boost to the Panthers during his rookie campaign a year ago, posting seven goals and 12 points in 42 games. But his 101 hits (seventh on the squad) jumps off the page, considering the 5-11, 195-pound former Brandon Wheat Kings star averaged just over nine minutes of ice time per game, competing in far fewer games than the names ahead of him.

He said he was ready, willing and able to resume being a spark-plug player in Florida after he was fully healed but couldn’t seem to do enough to turn the right heads. And he isn’t entirely sure he had much of an internal audience.

“It felt like I was starting from the start again. You’re always trying to prove yourself and if you’re not getting too many minutes, you better make those minutes count or else it’s not going to last long. (Quenneville) had his guys and was rolling with who he thought was going to win them games. He’s obviously a great coach and knows what he’s talking about, so that’s what he thought. I guess it was time for me to move on, and that’s how they felt,” said Hawryluk.

Drafted in the second round (32nd overall) in 2014, Hawryluk spent highly productive third and fourth seasons in Brandon — firing 47 goals in 56 games in his final season — before jumping to the AHL and posting solid numbers in parts of three seasons with the Thunderbirds.

He was promoted in mid-December in 2018, debuted at home against the Toronto Maple Leafs and, four games later, potted the first two goals of his NHL career in Chicago against the Blackhawks.

Hawryluk said he’s built to play a hard game but believes he blends that with a good set of hands.

In Ottawa, Sens coach D.J. Smith is high on the Manitoban he coached six years ago in the Hlinka-Gretzky Cup, an international showcase tournament for draft-eligible players. Smith, an assistant coach in Toronto last season, said the newest member of the team shone in a contest with the Leafs last year.

“He finished every check and he finished checks on the high-end players. He was a presence out there. I noticed him. We look for him to provide some energy, play hard every night,” he said.

“We love guys that play with emotion and he’s one of those guys.”

 

jason.bell@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @WFPJasonBell

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