Fleury making most of playoff opportunity with Jets

WINNIPEG -- Haydn Fleury has never questioned why he is or why he isn't in the lineup. The Winnipeg Jets defenseman just rolls with it.

"I mean, that's not really my job to decide whether I play. I think I'm a person that comes to the rink every day with the same attitude -- work hard," he said. "I think we have a lot of really good defensemen here who all have different strengths. So, I just think it's something where, right now, it's my turn to step up for the team."

Fleury's turn to step up came in Winnipeg's 4-3 double-overtime win in Game 7 of the Western Conference First Round against the St. Louis Blues on May 4. He played a career-high 33:02 after Josh Morrissey left in the first period with an undisclosed injury.

The 28-year-old has been in the lineup ever since and is expected to be there again in Game 3 of the second round against the Dallas Stars at American Airlines Center in Dallas on Sunday (4:30 p.m. ET; MAX, truTV, TBS, SN, TVAS, CBC).

Fleury got his second assist of the Stanley Cup Playoffs on Nikolaj Ehlers' first goal at 7:07 of the first period of Winnipeg's 4-0 win in Game 2 at Canada Life Centre on Friday. The Jets and Stars are tied 1-1 in the best-of-7 second-round series.

Known as a strong skater, Fleury's presence should be beneficial against the skilled and quick Stars.

"Just another guy that's been here all year that's kind of helped fill some of these holes when we've had some injuries and played extremely well," Winnipeg coach Scott Arniel said. "Again, another skillset. He's real mobile, he can skate out of trouble. Another guy that can be a part of that rush, a part of what we're talking about getting after Dallas here and getting on our toes. And that's what he brings to our game."

The No. 7 pick by the Carolina Hurricanes in the 2014 NHL Draft, Fleury has 44 points (10 goals, 34 assists) in 307 career games with the Hurricanes, Anaheim Ducks, Seattle Kraken, Tampa Bay Lightning and Jets. Winnipeg has solid depth on defense, so Fleury wasn't an everyday player during the regular season; he had seven assists in 39 games.

Fleury has four points (two goals, two assists) in 22 career postseason games. Prior to playing Game 4 against the Blues, he had played only one NHL postseason game since 2020 (with the Lightning in 2023).

Nobody could have predicted the five remaining defensemen logging the heavy minutes they did in Game 7 against St. Louis. But when needed, they responded, Fleury included. He played nearly 13 minutes more than his previous playoff career high of 20:33, which he logged with the Hurricanes in a 4-3 double-overtime loss to the Boston Bruins in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference First Round on Aug. 12, 2020.

"I think Haydn's done a fantastic job stepping in," Jets defenseman Dylan DeMelo said. "He's been kind of obviously sitting out and waiting his time and then coming in and playing as good as he did in Game 7 there, with five [defensemen], and stepping in and playing last game, I thought he played great too."

Fleury and DeMelo were on a defense pair in Game 1 against the Stars before Fleury and Colin Miller played together in Game 2.

"Fantastic skater, a great guy in the room, always works hard, puts his head down, he doesn't complain," DeMelo said. "So, when you see a guy step in like that and play well, you're just really happy for him."

Fleury said his Game 7 was "just a huge confidence boost."

"When you're called upon in that situation, then with Josh going out, it felt like you owe it to guys like [Morrissey] and 'Scheif' (center Mark Scheifele, who did not play in Games 6 or 7) and the guys who aren't playing to put your best foot forward because they do so much for us. They're such big parts of our team and they would've killed to be out there," he said.

"The rest of us stepping up like we did is just a testament to our group and how close we are as a team. We all really care about each other, and I think that was just guys stepping up for each other."

Fleury got a chance and took advantage of it. Things have gone well for the Jets, who are in the second round for the first time since 2021, and Fleury's excited to be a part of it.

"It's really special," he said. "Playoffs are the most fun time of year and playing in these games that matter not only to our team, but the city and the province (Manitoba) is really special."