‘It would be awesome to experience it again’

The mere mention of the unadulterated elation immediately brings a smile to the face of Tanner Pearson.

Sitting in his new stall inside Hockey For All Centre, the veteran forward casually mentions his career highlight and it’s as though he was immediately transformed into the time machine, landing in the heart of 2014.

Pearson was a second-year pro and had one solitary Stanley Cup playoff game on his resumé — and it came before making his regular-season debut with the Los Angeles Kings.

That would come on Nov. 14 of 2013, when he scored against Kevin Poulin of the New York Islanders.

The first real stint in the NHL lasted only six games, but when Pearson was recalled from the Manchester Monarchs of the American Hockey League on Jan. 7, he had no idea he was about to embark on a magic carpet ride.

In a matter of months, Pearson had earned the trust of the coaching staff and become a regular, riding shotgun as an integral member of “That 70s” line, with Jeff Carter and former Jets winger Tyler Toffoli.

With a solid frame and a heavy shot, Pearson provided some important secondary scoring, chipping in four goals and 12 points in 24 playoff games as the Kings came out of the Western Conference and ultimately knocked off the New York Rangers in five games.

Talk about an exciting way to wrap up a rookie season.

“It did happen fast,” Pearson said during a one-on-one interview. “What was it, 25 regular season games and 24 playoff games? Kind of lucky in a sense. You don’t really take it in as much as you would have liked.

“Lucky enough to play with some guys that won two years before, that helped my curve progress quicker. Just being a sponge with those guys.”

Although it was a whirlwind for Pearson, he was able to recognize how special it was for veteran defenceman Robyn Regehr to capture his first Stanley Cup after a pursuit that lasted nearly two decades in the NHL.

“That’s where you appreciate it a bit,” said Pearson. “You see a guy like that, who has worked so hard, to see that was special.”

After turning 33 last month, Pearson is still looking for that elusive second Cup.

He’s appeared in 59 post-season contests — including eight with the Vegas Golden Knights last spring and a run to the Western Conference final with the Vancouver Canucks in 2020 — and his hunger to get back to the top of the mountain remains, which is part of the reason he joined the Jets on a one-year, one-way deal on July 1.

“The Presidents’ Trophy winner is not a bad one to go to. At this stage of my career, I’m lucky enough to have won before. But the clock is ticking,” said Pearson, who had 12 goals and 27 points in 78 games with the Golden Knights last season. “I want to get that (feeling) back again. It’s the best feeling in the world. A few of us have that experience and it would be awesome to experience it again.

“You want to have a chance to do it every year. I like the position that I’ve come into.”

Pearson, who is six-foot-one and 207 pounds, is the latest versatile forward to join the organization as a free agent.

Where he slots in is still to be determined, but he’s getting early looks in training camp with Morgan Barron and Cole Koepke on what could be an energetic line that can provide some secondary scoring.

Pearson has eight double digit goal-scoring seasons and has eclipsed 20 twice.

“I don’t think it’s evolved that much,” said Pearson, asked to describe how his game has changed over the course of his 722 games during 12 NHL seasons. “When you get older, you have projections and you score 20 goals and then you’re supposed to score 20 goals every year and it doesn’t happen. You go through a bit of heartache, you go through downs, you go through a couple of trades and it’s definitely a learning curve.

“Last year, I zoned in on a good role. Being on a fourth line and I can kind of go anywhere. I take that to heart now and I’m looking to play anywhere and everywhere. Wherever they need me. It’s going to be one of those things where you play to the best of your ability.”

Pearson should be in the mix to be on the Jets’ second power-play unit and there’s a chance he could be added to the penalty kill as well, especially early in the season when captain Adam Lowry is still recovering from off-season hip surgery.

“Honestly, he kind of does everything,” said Jets centre Mark Scheifele. “He shoots the puck well, he can play up and down the lineup. Obviously, I know him very well. I played up with his team in minor hockey a number of times, so I’ve known him for a very, very long time.

“Obviously I played with him in junior. He brings experience. He’s won a cup. He’s a guy that you can plug in anywhere and he will do well. He battles hard. Having guys like that, especially during a long season, is very crucial.”

Pearson appreciates his connection with Scheifele that dates back to their minor hockey in Ontario and continued later with the Barrie Colts of the Ontario Hockey League.

“Me and Scheif have probably known each other, realistically, for about 20 years,” said Pearson. “We were both lucky enough to play with each other in Barrie. Let’s say that we helped each other out. It’s exciting.”

They also pushed each other, spending countless hours firing pucks as they worked on their respective shots.

“I did shoot a lot of pucks, in Mr. Scheifele’s backyard, shooting pucks and having scoring competitions. I like to say that I took the cake back then. Not so much anymore. He may argue that one, but we’ll save that for another day,” said Pearson. “It was everything. Targets, posts, posts and in. You name it, we did it. Blisters galore on the hands. It was just two young guys, loving the game and wanting to get better. It’s great to look back at it now. To see where (Scheifele) is, you can’t be more proud.”

Part of that connection included being around the late Dale Hawerchuk during those two seasons with the Colts.

“Incredible,” said Pearson. “He let the offensive guys have that mind of their own. Dale showed a bunch of confidence in me. That went a long way for my career.”

As Pearson prepares for this most recent Stanley Cup chase, he sees some parallels to the Kings teams he was part of in the early part of his career — citing a young core that grew up together, suffered some playoff disappointments and eventually won the big prize.

“It’s kind of similar in a sense,” said Pearson. “If you go back to L.A., even before I was there, it was the guys that they kind of groomed through the process. (Dustin) Brown, (Anze) Kopitar, (Trevor) Lewis, (Drew) Doughty, (Jake) Muzzin, (Alec) Martinez, all of those guys. And then, they traded for character guys along the way.

“Then you look at (things) here and it’s a lot of the same, in a sense. A lot of guys have been drafted here and they’re knocking (on the door).”

ken.wiebe@freepress.mb.ca

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