Penguins forward Jansen Harkins begins to generate offense
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Jansen Harkins did exactly as he had been told by the Pittsburgh Penguins coaches.
And it did not work out as designed.
But it did work out in a good way.
He shot. And a goal was scored.
He just wasn’t the one who scored it.
During Monday’s 4-1 road win against the Philadelphia Flyers, Harkins claimed a loose puck off a turnover created by fellow fourth-liner Jeff Carter. Then, from the left circle of the offensive zone, Harkins let it rip.
And missed the cage. Replays showed the puck sailing wide to the far side and bouncing off the right corner boards and deflecting to the right point.
From there, Penguins defenseman Erik Karlsson settled the puck and fired a wrister through a multi-player screen and by the left shoulder of goaltender Carter Hart.
While he didn’t do what he intended, Harkins earned an assist, his third of the season.
And he did it by doing what management wants him to do.
“They’ve asked me to shoot,” Harkins said last week in Cranberry. “When I get the opportunity to be a shooter, they’re not always looking for the pass first. Just kind of getting out of my own way a little bit.
“Sometimes, you get the puck, and, when you haven’t scored in a while or something, you’re not exactly looking at the back of the net and thinking this is going in. Just having a bit more of that mindset, a bit more killer instinct, you see some of the best guys do it. Every time they’re around the net, they think they can score.”
Monday’s assist was the latest in a small surge of offense for Harkins, who has recorded all three of his assists (and points) this season in just over the past two weeks.
The first came in a 4-2 home win against the St. Louis Blues on Dec. 30. Stealing a clearing attempt by Blues goaltender Joel Hofer on the left wall of the offensive zone, Harkins snapped a pass to the front of the crease, where Carter shoveled a forehand redirection into the net for the winning goal.
One night later, Harkins set up the opening score in a 3-1 home win against the New York Islanders. Racing up the left-wing wall, he slipped a clever pass to the far side of the crease that forward Lars Eller slammed in with a forehand shot.
Up until that point, any recordable offense had been difficult for Harkins to find since he joined the Penguins as a claim off waivers Oct. 2.
“I’ve always been a skilled player,” Harkins said. “Coming up, you’ve got to adapt your game a little bit to what the needs are for the team. For me, ever since getting here, it’s been fast and getting on the forecheck. It doesn’t take away from making plays. Sometimes, it just takes a little time to get comfortable. Personally, it’s no surprise. That’s the kind of stuff that I can do. It was just kind of a matter of time.”
Harkins’ time with the Penguins has been something of a mixed bag.
On Monday in Philadelphia, his success setting up Karlsson’s goal was stunted by two minor penalties Harkins took in the first period.
Impressive in a handful of preseason games after being claimed off waivers from the Winnipeg Jets, Harkins was largely inert in the first four games of the regular season and then placed on waivers again Oct. 19. Going unclaimed, he was assigned to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton of the American Hockey League one day later.
After posting nine points (four goals, five assists) in 11 AHL games, Harkins was recalled to the NHL roster Nov. 18 when injuries began to pockmark the forward ranks. After being shuffled between the NHL and AHL rosters between Nov. 19-22, he has remained in the lineup — primarily as a fourth liner — for all 20 of the team’s games since Nov. 25, even as the Penguins forwards got healthier.
“(Harkins) has really developed his game quite a bit in his time here,” Penguins coach Mike Sullivan said. “He has a better understanding of what the expectations are and how he needs to play to fulfill a certain role on our team. He brings a lot of speed to the line that he’s on. He’s got a great shot, a deceptive release. We’re trying to encourage him to shoot the puck more. He’s been a lot stiffer in the puck battles, both off the forecheck and the breakouts with his wall play.
“Those are elements that we’re focused on with him in trying to help him improve and get better and just trying to heighten the awareness so that he values those things. When he does that and he utilizes his speed, that’s when he’s at his best.”
A second-round pick (No. 47 overall) of the Jets in 2015, Harkins spent the first four seasons of his NHL career with that organization. That meant when he was sent to the AHL, he didn’t have to go far. Or anywhere at all.
The Jets and their AHL affiliate, the Manitoba Moose, play in the same building, currently known as Canada Life Centre.
That meant when the Penguins assigned him to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton — a roughly four-hour car ride across Pennsylvania — he was in a different place in more ways than one as a professional.
“I always had every kind of easy comfort in terms of my day-to-day life in Winnipeg,” Harkins said. “I was there for seven years, and both teams (NHL and AHL) are in the same city, so I never had to deal with any of this kind of travel. There’s, obviously, differences that come with that. First time living in a hotel in my pro career. I’ve got a fiancee and a dog. … Those are kind of the trickiest parts. The hockey, you want to stay on top of that no matter where you’re living. Just being able to do both comfortably and be solid on the ice when you’re not really sure what’s going on off the ice, that’s something that I haven’t really had to deal with.
“It kind of took a little bit of time to get used to that. Now, the last couple weeks at least, it’s been really good for me here.”
Note: The Penguins had a scheduled day off Tuesday.