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Mike Sudoma \/ FREE PRESS FILES<\/p>\n
Manitoba Moose forward Colby Barlow is riding high on the eve of his first Calder Cup playoffs after regaining his scoring touch. <\/p>\n
\u201cYeah, it can get frustrating, for sure,\u201d said Barlow, who finished his first full professional season with eight goals and 16 points in 65 games.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou go back and think about it and you\u2019re like, \u2018I could have done this and I should have done that.\u2019 But I\u2019ve definitely switched that (mentality) to just taking it day by day, trying to get a little bit better each day, no matter what area it is that I\u2019m trying to work on. Not dwelling over it. Just sticking with it, sticking with the process and, ultimately, believing in yourself. You\u2019ve played the game your whole life and just believe in yourself.\u201d<\/p>\n
The temptation is to write off the campaign as a tough one for Barlow, who is known for his heavy shot and ability to rack up goals at a high rate through his Ontario Hockey League career with the Owen Sound Attack and Oshawa Generals.<\/p>\n
However, the ability to persevere through some challenging times is something that should serve him well, both in the long term and as he embarks on the highest stakes games of the season.<\/p>\n
\u201cAt the start of the year, I was caught up in a lot of just learning and trying to be perfect and not making a mistake. But you have to make mistakes (to) grow and you have to play your game and do what got you here,\u201d said Barlow. \u201cThere\u2019s less space, it\u2019s harder to get into those scoring areas. There\u2019s less time to get your shot off, so it\u2019s all of the things I had to adjust to at the beginning of the year, in the first half. Those are things that have gotten better as the year has gone on.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s starting to pay off. I\u2019m starting to find quiet ice and learning how to spin off of checks in front of the net to get body position, to screen the goalie, half wall work. All of that stuff has been growing over the season and it\u2019s starting to come together now.\u201d<\/p>\n
The proof is in the results.<\/p>\n
Not only did Barlow record his first multi-goal game in the regular-season finale against the Iowa Wild, he racked up four goals during the previous four games and had another taken off the board after a debatable goalie interference call.<\/p>\n
Barlow\u2019s growth over the course of the season has been evident to Moose head coach Mark Morrison.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou can see him handling the puck more. He\u2019s on the forecheck, stripping pucks. He just wants to puck more. That\u2019s been a good sign,\u201d said Morrison. \u201cHe\u2019s taken different steps at different times for me. It started with the D-zone and being responsible. And by Christmas, I thought he had that down. Then, his offensive game started to come. In the last month, he had a couple games with seven and eight shots a game and now, those shots are going in.<\/p>\n
\u201cHis shot is good, but it\u2019s about him getting into that space inside. It\u2019s about him learning to get open and get an open stick in there, and his timing of getting inside that box. And, that\u2019s all experience.\u201d<\/p>\n
Moose captain Mason Shaw was impressed by Barlow\u2019s ability to take strides after making some important adjustments.<\/p>\n
\u201cYour first year of pro is a really hard season and I remember going through it when I was 20. There are a lot of ups and downs and it is a different grind, something you are not used to,\u201d said Shaw, who led the Moose in scoring. \u201cSo, ebbs and flows to a season but he has heated up at the best time of year and he is playing really well.<\/p>\n
\u201cMore importantly, he is a great teammate to us. He just put his head down and worked all year, so I am not surprised the results are coming now. It was just a matter of time.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Moose, who posted a record of 35-29-5-3, picked up at least a point in each of the final five games (3-0-2) of the regular season, allowing them to secure home ice advantage against the Admirals, who are the primary affiliate of the Nashville Predators.<\/p>\n
These two teams have already faced each other eight times, so there\u2019s plenty of familiarity going into this series.<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t Jeffrey T. Barnes \/ THE ASSOCIATED PRESS FILES<\/p>\n Manitoba Moose goaltender Thomas Milic (left) is one of four players that made their NHL debuts this season with the Winnipeg Jets. Milic is expected to get the call in net Wednesday for Game 1 against the Milwaukee Admirals after being named Most Valuable Player for the Moose this season.<\/p>\n \u201cThere really are no secrets to each side,\u201d said Shaw. \u201cSo, the biggest thing is getting to your game first. You can\u2019t wait around or tiptoe in. We know what to expect and we know what they are good at, but we also know our strengths and we are going to try and execute those.\u201d<\/p>\n The Moose should get a boost from the return of forwards Brad Lambert and Brayden Yager from the Jets and if defenceman Elias Salomonsson (concussion protocol) and\/or winger Nikita Chibrikov (undisclosed) get medical clearance in the near future, that would also be beneficial.<\/p>\n Manitoba\u2019s roster (even without Salomonsson, who appeared in 32 games with the Jets) has four players on it that made their NHL debuts this season, including goalie Thomas Milic (two games) and forwards Danny Zhilkin (six games) and Yager (three games).<\/p>\n The Jets made a commitment during the off-season to bolster a roster that missed the playoffs, adding a bunch of veteran contributors for the Moose, including defenceman Kale Clague and forwards Sam Fagemo, Walker Duehr, Jaret Anderson-Dolan (who appeared in a Jets playoff games last spring) and Phil Di Giuseppe, who helped the Abbotsford Canucks capture the Calder Cup last spring.<\/p>\n Milic is expected to get the call in net after being named the Most Valuable Player for the Moose this season.<\/p>\n The Admirals had some player assignments of their own from the Predators \u2014 including forwards Reid Schaefer and Zach L\u2019Heureux \u2014 so there are plenty of prospects on both teams to keep an eye on.<\/p>\n Moose tracks<\/p>\n \n\t\tWinnipeg Free Press | Newsletter\n\t<\/p>\n \t\t\tThe Warm-Up<\/p>\n Winnipeg Jets Game Days<\/p>\n On Winnipeg Jets game days, hockey writers Mike McIntyre and Ken Wiebe send news, notes and quotes from the morning skate, as well as injury updates and lineup decisions. Arrives a few hours prior to puck drop.<\/p>\n \t\t\tSign up for The Warm-Up<\/a><\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t Moose forward David Gustafsson (lower body) participated in Tuesday\u2019s workout and is on track to suit up for the series opener, according to Morrison<\/p>\n Jets defence prospect Garrett Brown, who recently captured the NCAA Frozen Four title with the University of Denver Pioneers, was on the ice with the group and would be eligible to be in the lineup this round after signing an amateur tryout offer.<\/p>\n Jets forward prospect Kevin He is dealing with an undisclosed injury that knocked him out of the final game of the Flint Firebirds run during the OHL playoffs, but he skated on Tuesday morning and is progressing nicely.<\/p>\n Morrison said that forward prospect Kieron Walton (undisclosed) was probably a week or so away from returning to the ice after he got banged up in his OHL playoffs with the Peterborough Petes.<\/p>\n winnipegfreepress.com\/kenwiebe<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t Ken Wiebe Ken Wiebe is a sports reporter for the Free Press, with an emphasis on the Winnipeg Jets. He has covered hockey and provided analysis in this market since 2000 for the Winnipeg Sun, The Athletic, Sportsnet.ca and TSN. Ken was a summer intern at the Free Press in 1999 and returned to the Free Press in a full-time capacity in September of 2023. Read more about Ken<\/a>.<\/p>\n Every piece of reporting Ken produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print \u2014 part of the Free Press\u2018s tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press\u2019s history and mandate<\/a>, and learn how our newsroom operates<\/a>.<\/p>\n Our newsroom depends on a growing audience of readers to power our journalism. If you are not a paid reader, please consider becoming a subscriber<\/a>.<\/p>\n Our newsroom depends on its audience of readers to power our journalism. Thank you for your support.<\/p>\n \t\t
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