Seth Jarvis shines as Chicago Wolves remain undefeated

For anyone wondering whether Seth Jarvis is the real deal, all you have to do is watch his play in the AHL. Jarvis, who just turned 19 on Feb. 1, is one of the youngest players in the league, but you’d never know it based on how seamlessly he has adapted to the professional game.

While Jarvis carries the impressive pedigree of being a first-round draft pick, he wouldn’t have been the first young player to find himself stumbling in his professional debut. But he’s looked like a natural in his four games to date, and has the stats to back up the eye test. Jarvis has four goals in four games, is second in total scoring by first-year players, as well as in the league overall, and is seeing significant time on the Wolves’ power play.

The Portland Winterhawks, Jarvis’ WHL team, are set to begin play on March 19, so Jarvis’ time in the AHL will be coming to a close in the near future, but he’s already provided a tantalizing glimpse into the future for the Hurricanes.

Game 3: Chicago 5, Rockford 2

No matter who’s on the roster for the Wolves and IceHogs, the two teams never like each other very much. The Wolves’ special teams units, both fairly middle of the pack in the league, got plenty of chances to work on their craft in this game. The frequent opponents usually find themselves in a parade to the penalty box, and this game was no exception, with the Wolves taking an astounding nine penalties (Rockford took six).

Seth Jarvis opened the scoring at 15:59 in the first period with a power-play goal, and while Rockford tied the game midway through the second period, the Wolves once again continued to apply pressure. Nashville prospects Philip Tomasino and Rem Pitlick each scored two goals, with one of Pitlick’s coming shorthanded, as the Wolves’ aggressive penalty kill marked its first tally of the season.

While special teams work does make for exciting hockey to watch, it is harder for players to get into a rhythm in terms of line rotations, and can be a challenge for a coach looking to keep all of his players involved. After the game, Warsofsky praised the flexibility of his team in regards to ice time.

“It’s difficult, to be honest,” Warsofsky admitted. “We have a lot of players that aren’t even in our lineup, we’ve got a lot of changes, we’ve got to get other guys in, we’ve got to get other looks. We have some younger players that need to play different roles than maybe they thought they’d be playing in a season like this.”

Scoring: Philip Tomasino, 2 G 1 A; Rem Pitlick, 2 G; Seth Jarvis, 1 G; Joey Keane, 2 A; Tanner Jeannot, 2 A; Ryan Suzuki, 1 A; Stelio Mattheos, 1 A; Jeremy Davies, 1 A

In Net: Jeremy Helvig, 0.920 Sv %, stopped 23 of 25

Game 4: Chicago 4, Grand Rapids 2

For as much as Seth Jarvis has been the biggest story out of Chicago so far, two other first-year players stole the show in this game. David Cotton, playing alongside his brother for the first time, had a three-point night, including scoring the eventual game winner in the third period. Cotton, who turned pro after four years at Boston College, may not have the first-round pedigree or inevitable future as a first liner, but he’s already showing that he can produce at the professional level.

Goaltender Beck Warm was outstanding in his professional debut, stopping 36 of 38 shots that he faced, in a game where the Wolves struggled to limit traffic in front of their own net. Speaking after the game, Warsofsky was complimentary of Warm’s performance, particularly given that the goaltender wasn’t able to attend all of the Wolves’ training camp due to travel issues.

“Outstanding. I thought he fought through traffic really well for probably being an undersized goaltender,” Warsofsky said. “Great feet, finds pucks, made some big saves when we needed him to.”

Warsofsky was proud of his team’s overall effort and compete level in the win, but in particular was proud of how well his players have come together as a team, especially given the fact that they come from two separate NHL organizations.

“You would never know there’s two organizations here,” he said. “The guys want to win and I think we want competitors, and right now, we have a group of guys, whether you’re in the lineup or not, we want to win hockey games.”

Scoring: David Cotton, 2 G 1 A; Seth Jarvis, 1 G 1 A; Tanner Jeannot, 1 G; Joey Keane, 1 A; Ryan Suzuki, 1 A; Jeremy Davies, 1 A

In Net: Beck Warm, 0.947 Sv %, stopped 36 of 38