'Chance To Bury It'

TORONTO - The pass-first player, AKA everybody’s favourite teammate.

Nothing better than skating alongside someone blessed with a high hockey IQ and the deft ability to find the seams and lanes to dish perfect feeds.

That’s been Jonathan Huberdeau’s bread and butter since he was drafted third overall in 2011, displaying his gift for giving en route to 519 assists in 896 regular-season skates, along with 16 more in 26 postseason contests.

But this season, Huberdeau leads the team in goals with 25, one more tally than he has helpers.

He’s scored three times in his last two games, and his current 20.3 shooting percentage has him 15^th in the league in that department (Winnipeg's Mark Scheifele is tops at 24.1%).

“Ya, I mean I’m not that guy (that) probably shoots a lot so the shooting percentage kind of stays up,” smiled Huberdeau after the team’s morning skate at Scotiabank Arena, ahead of tonight’s tilt with the Maple Leafs (5:30 P.M. MTN, Prime). “But, yeah, I mean, fortunately last game able to get a goal off the shoulder. But, just try to be around the net and being in a good spot that I can have a chance to bury it.”

That tally he mentioned came Friday in a loss to the Avalanche, when he parked himself in front of the net and a shot bounced off him and into the cage.

But the two goals he scored against the Canucks on Wednesday were things of beauty: one a tip of a pass from Kevin Rooney on a shorthanded 2-on-0, getting enough of a bouncing puck to put it bar down and in, the other a rocket of a wrister from the left faceoff dot that lodged top shelf under the goalie’s water bottle.

But, hey, they don’t ask how, just how many.

“I’m getting the bounces,” said Huberdeau. “But just to have to keep going. Obviously we wanted to win – it doesn’t matter when you score if you don’t win. So we have to create offensively, but in a way that we can win some games.”

Blueliner MacKenzie Weegar is also on quite a heater, with a goal and seven points in his last six outings.

He’s third in team scoring with seven goals and 39 points.

“It’s good,” said Weegar of his recent run. “I like to contribute and I think I’ve been getting some good bounces my way. You know when you’re getting bounces like that you got to take advantage of it. I’m feeling the puck, I’m confident with the puck, and making some plays.

“When times are tough scoring, sometimes I look at myself as one of those guys that has to contribute and step and start momentum for the team. The guys are burying for me, but I’m putting them in opportunities to score and I have to keep doing that.”

Turning back to Huberdeau, he’s on pace to eclipse the 30-goal mark for the third time in his career at his current pace.

Given his shooting percentage and play this year, has longtime teammate and good friend Weegar told him to fire the puck more?

“I have,” he answered with a grin. “There are definitely times for him to shoot more, but, I mean, he’s an elite player. If he hears me saying that, he’ll probably just laugh at me, too. So, he trusts his instincts and he sees the game super well. I’m glad to see him scoring more this year; he’s having a great year, so I know his confidence is high.”

With captain Mikael Backlund sidelined week-to-week with an upper body injury and Connor Zary sitting out the final tilt of a two-game suspension, the Flames – who have struggled to score this season – can use everybody chipping in.

But that all starts from being mindful in their own end and concentrating on defence before transitioning up the ice.

“Ya, we need some offence, for sure,” said Huberdeau. “But we’ve got to limit the amount of goals (we’re giving up), so then after that we go on offence and we need to score – usually when we score three goals we have a good chance to win.”