NEW YORK It was such a subtle play, it was easy for the naked eye to mi s.

In the seconds after Paul Stastny Michael Raffl Jersey dropped the puck to his new linemate Patrik Laine, Stastny cut toward the net. In doing so, he not only bumped into the man who had been shadowing him, but another who was trying toswitchonto Laine, and into the path of a third who could have po sibly applied defensive support.

“Hes a smart player” Laine said. “He knows how to play those situations and hes done that thousands of times. He knows exactly what to do, and its an extra half a second that he gives us, and thats enough on those plays.”

It was more than enough time for Laine, whosnapped home a wrist shot past Henrik Lundqvist to give the Jets a 1-0 lead.

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When Winnipeg acquired Paul Stastny in a surprise move hours before the NHL trade deadline, this is the type of play they envisioned. The Jets and general manager Kevin Cheveldayoff have long coveted Stastny. And since division realignment in 2013-14, Stastny isa player they have seen frequentlyin person. When the opportunity arose to add him to their roster, Winnipeg thought itcould not only add a stellar two-way player, but one whom could flourish offensively in the Jets ecosystem.

“His role in St. Louis was a little bit more defense-oriented, but you put him with good players and, look at his numbers in the past,” captain Blake Wheeler said. “He’s been a point a game guy even when points were tougher to come by.”

Since joining the Jets, Stastny hasfive points in four games, playing next to Laine and Nikolaj Ehlers. Not a bad start.

“I knew that line was going to take, it was just a matter of how soon it would take,” Wheeler said. “It happened right off the bat.”

The Jets were already a well-rounded, offensively talented team before making the move to get Stastny. By adding him, they have put themselves firmly in the conversation among Stanley Cup contenders, with the center depth coveted by every club in the league and consistent with those who have recently been among hockey’s best.

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“We’re trying not to get too far ahead of ourselves, but just how the teams that have won recently are structured, it kind of lets our group take that similar shape,” Wheeler said. “Having that center depth is obviously really important.”

The Jets are trying to keepexpectations grounded on the tarmac, but it’s moments like that a sistTuesday night that make it hard to hide their excitement.

“We’re still trying to find our game, and having him, if that allows us to play our best hockey at the right time of the year, who knows what could happen?” Wheeler said.

While his production dipped this year in St. Louis, on pace to finishbelow 60 points for the fourth time in as many seasons since leaving Colorado, there was a quiet confidence in Winnipeg that Stastny would excel in his new role.

Playing between players the caliber of Laine and Ehlers, Stastny himself wasn’t too concerned about his role, either.

“I’m playing with two extremely gifted players,” he said.” I’ve played with players like that, so I know what I’m doing. I know defensively sometimes I have to just talk to them a little bit more and be aware of it. Sometimes my job is to just get that puck and get it in their hands as quick as you can, and kind of play that transition game.”

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That’s what Stastny did Tuesday, leaving the puck for Laine before playing the role of lead blocker, a little Red Wings-style pick play in which he creates legal interference.

“This guy is a great, veteran pro,” head coach Paul Maurice said. “Watching him play, he does so many of the things Ron Francis would do. He has such a great understanding of whats going on on the ice, the adjustments the other team are making, and whats happening around him.

“He knows where [Laine] is. He didnt step into the guy to interfere with him. He just held his lane so he doesnt take a penalty. Its a clean play by a really headsy player.”

Stastny is a hockey lifer. His dad, Peter, spent 15 years in the NHL. When the Jets acquired Stastny two weeks ago, they played two games at home. Tuesday marked the second of a six-game road trip, one that Stastny said is allowing him to bond more with his teammates, and become acquainted with the players he’s hoping he can make a deep playoff run with.

“I’m a big believer in chemistry,” Stastny said. “The guys you play with Kyle Brodziak Jersey on the ice you kind of get along with off the ice because you think the game the same way.

“The more you spend with someone,I mean, you don’t always want to talk about hockey because you’re on it all the time but it seems like hockey is always talked about.”

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In new teammate Mark Scheifele, Stastny has found a kindred spirit. Scheifele is another hockey-obse sed brain, like Stastny, studying the game and its intricacies as much to hone their craft as to appease their appetite.

“I’ve always been a student of the game like he has, I’m just a little bit older,” Stastny said. “Playing against him and watching him play, he’s an elite player. He’s another guy who thinks the game the same way. You start talking to those guys, and different players with special teams, and you realize all of a sudden guys see the game the way you do.”

What the Jets are beginning to see is they were correct in their a se sment and expectation of the 32-year-old, who is set to become an unrestricted free agent this summer. For a team that won’t openly talk about its Stanley Cup aspirations but isn’t naive to the concept, this is great news.

“We know we have a good team in here, we know he brings a lot of experience and a wealth of knowledge, and he’s been a big pick-up for us,” Scheifele said.

The Jets could face the Wild in the first round of the playoffs, which would mean matching up against centers Eric Staal and Mikko Koivu. If they advance to the second round, the Predators and Ryan Johansen, Kyle Turris and Nick Bonino could be waiting. If the Penguins again figure out how to conquer the East, they’ll bring with them Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkinand Derick Bra sard to the Cup Final.

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The importance of center depth is no secret in the NHL. Now with Scheifele, Bryan Little, Stastnyand Andrew Copp, the Jets have Artemi Panarin Jersey their four musketeers who give Maurice flexibility and the tools to make life very difficult for opposing coaching staffs.

“What we’re looking for a lot of nights is, ‘Can we find an advantage?'” Maurice said. “If one of those three offensive lines is going can we move them around and get them away from the other team’s checking line, but be comfortable.”

In his past nine games, Laine has 13 goals. That type of production draws top checking lines and defensive pairings in matchups. But that also means the line of Blake Wheeler, Mark Scheifele and Kyle Connor getting the B-group.

“When you look at a team with a lot of depth — that’s what attracted me to these guys,” said Stastny, who had to waive his no-trade clause to approve a move to Winnipeg. “They have a lot of depth, a lot of good players top-to-bottom. So all of a sudden if one line is hot, they get a tougher matchup, but then all of a sudden it frees up whether it’s [Little’s] line, or our line, so all of a sudden if we’re getting a tough matchup, then it frees up [Wheeler and Scheifele’s] line.”

It perhaps makes Maurice’s job more involved, more pieces in the che s match that can break out between coaches during games. But whereas most are mostly dealing in pawns, the wealth of royalty at Maurice’s disposal gives Winnipeg the type of looking board equipped to play hockey into June.

“All of these matchup concepts are based on performance though, and we like that,” Maurice said.

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Stastny raves about new lineman Laine

The primary a sist Stastny recorded on Laine’s first goal was an example of something he alluded to prior to the game, ” …to just get that puck and get it in their hands.”

It’s not exactly an unfamiliar role for Stastny, which he acknowledged. As a member of the Blues this season, he spent over 70 percent of his 5-on-5 minutes with Vladimir Tarasenko. Dating back to his Colorado days, he played with talents like Nathan MacKinnon and Milan Hejduk.

“When you play with those guys, when you get half a second, it makes a big difference,” Stastny said. “Whether I go at him or take his stick away, it freezes him up, and then all of a sudden [Laine] as someone who can shoot quick has that extra second. I’ve always done that, and I’ve always liked when guys have done that to me, too. It’s kind of like that two-on-one hockey, Cal Clutterbuck Jersey pick-and-roll hockey.”

Stastny is quickly learning how to play off of Laine, what works and what doesn’t, and how he can create shooting opportunities for his lethal winger in any situation.

Kind of like what his job was in St. Louis playing with Tarasenko?

“It’s different,” Stastny said. “Someone asked me earlier who [Laine] shoots like, and he actually shoots like Hejduk in a sense where his hands are very soft and it’s very effortle s, and it seems like he doesn’t really lean into it.

“It’s hard to read off [Laine]. But he’s four inches taller than Hejduk, and his shot probably has 15 miles per-hour on him. But Hejduk was one of those guys who would shoot while he was stick-handling, he’d pick his spots all the time, and he didn’t need a lot of time.

“So to me, his hands are more like that, where [Tarasenko] is more of a guy who, same thing, he doesn’t really pull the puck back. It’s almost in front of him; he almost needs six inches just to push the puck the way he releases it. Two different guys, and one is a righty, one is a lefty, but the things iswhen you play with guys like that, they know how to get open.”

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