Connor’s milestone night in Michigan

DETROIT — Kyle Connor is no longer the little kid from Shelby Township working on his shot by blasting hundreds of pucks a day in his garage.

He’s now the big kid from Shelby Township having highlight-reel moments on the largest hockey stage in his backyard.

Connor, 27, wasted no time on Wednesday recording his 500th career NHL point, dishing out a beautiful assist to linemate Gabe Vilardi 2:48 into the his team’s annual visit to Michigan. He then added points No. 501 (an assist on Neal Pionk’s first goal of the night) and 502 (his own snipe, a team-leading ninth of the season) before the opening frame was finished.

Happy homecoming, kid.

Connor spoke with the Free Press a few hours before puck drop, saying how much it would mean to hit a milestone in a place that means so much to him.

“You never take anything for granted in this league. It’s tough every single day, it’s the best league in the world,” said Connor.

“To get that accomplishment is pretty cool. Obviously there’s bigger goals in mind, but it’s still nice.”

It sure didn’t look very tough against the Detroit Red Wings for Connor, who was coming off a four-point outing on Monday against the Toronto Maple Leafs.

With 17 points (9G, 8A) in 10 games, he’s off to the best start of his career and is among the league leaders in all offensive categories. His previous single-season highs of goals (47), assists (49) and points (93) could all be in jeopardy if he can stay healthy. Not that he has a potential ceiling in mind.

“You know, I don’t really set numbers going into a season, per se,” said Connor.

“It’s good to get into a groove, especially when you’ve got these games every other day. You kind of find your groove there. But as far as a specific goal, you don’t like to put limits on yourself, if you set yourself a goal. That’s kind of how I look at it. So I try not to think about it at all.”

Jets coach Scott Arniel, an associate for the past two years, is seeing a more dangerous and determined Connor than ever.

“The thing I like the most about KC, we know the goal scoring, the shot and stuff, but his ability to work to get the puck back, the way he tracks, the way he takes a lot of pride in playing without it,” Arniel said following the morning skate.

“That leads to offence, allows him to play with it a little bit more. He’s a guy when he doesn’t have it, he goes and gets it.”

That has led to Arniel even deploying him on the penalty kill, knowing he can be trusted with those additional responsibilities.

“He’s taken a lot of pride in the last few years being more responsible when he doesn’t have the puck,” said Arniel. “We talk about buy-in, especially from your top guys, and he does that on a nightly basis. It gets noticed by his teammates and they see the effort he puts in. He gets rewarded for it.”

Connor, as always, had quite the cheering gallery on hand for his latest visit, with dozens of family members, friends, former teammates and coaches inside Little Caesars Arena.

“I love coming to Detroit and obviously playing here. It’s just such a different vibe than anywhere else,” he said.

“Obviously spend a lot of time here, spend my summers here. Tons of family and friends. It’s just a different atmosphere here towards the game. Just kind of relish it and embrace it.”

There were other reminders about Connor’s past in the building Wednesday, including former college teammates JT Compher and Tyler Motte who are now members of the Red Wings.

Dubbed the CCM line, they were one of the more lethal trios at the time while playing for the University of Michigan in 2015-16. Connor had 71 points that year in 38 games, while Compher (63) and Motte (56) had big years as well.

“I feel like you never really know when guys are in junior or college how it will translate. But he always had that scoring ability,” Compher said following the morning skate.

“It didn’t matter where he got the puck, how much time he would have or how much room he would have, he was always able to get it off. He’s got a super fun release to watch. It’s sneaky and quick. He’s also just a crafty player, a good playmaker and a great skater. I’m not surprised to see him having a great career.”

Compher (247 points in 509 games) and Motte (90 points in 404 games) haven’t enjoyed the same level of success but continue to cheer him on from a distance.

“It’s one of the things you talk about as a kid. You want to make the next level and take advantage of the opportunity. It’s fun to see your classmates and teammates doing it as well,” said Compher.

Jets forward Mason Appleton was part of the same draft class as Connor, who went 17th-overall in 2015 (Appleton went 168th). He thinks the best is yet to come.

“Just the way he can impact the game and score at any at any second is unbelievable. He’s got that scoring touch that not many guys in this league have,” said Appleton.

“So it seems almost like every other night he scores a goal. You almost get used to it, but it’s like, well, that’s an unbelievable goal. So he’s a heck of a player, and he’s got a lot more time in his career.”

It’s too bad the Jets don’t play in Detroit more often. Connor now has eight goals and eight assists in 13 career NHL games here.

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Mike McIntyre
Sports reporter

Mike McIntyre is a sports reporter whose primary role is covering the Winnipeg Jets. After graduating from the Creative Communications program at Red River College in 1995, he spent two years gaining experience at the Winnipeg Sun before joining the Free Press in 1997, where he served on the crime and justice beat until 2016. Read more about Mike.

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