Maurice announced after Thursdays practice that veteran

WINNIPEG - Paul Maurice has seen a lot of things during his lengthy coaching career, but nothing quite like whats happening to the Winnipeg Jets defensive corps.Maurice announced after Thursdays practice that veteran defenceman Mark Stuart has a lower-body injury that will keep him out of the lineup until February.Stuart joins injured top defencemen Jacob Trouba, Zach Bogosian and Toby Enstrom.Later in the afternoon, the Jets acquired veteran defenceman Jay Harrison from the Carolina Hurricanes in exchange for Ottawas sixth-round pick in the 2015 NHL draft, which had been acquired by Winnipeg at the 2014 draft.Maurice has coached more than 1,000 games in the NHL and said hes never seen such a rash of injuries to defencemen at the same time, but the team has no choice but to roll with it.Its the same line I gave two, three days ago — this is our adversity. This is what we have to deal with, he said. Every team will have their stretch.I havent been in a situation where Ive seen that number of guys that play at that level of your depth chart (out) for such an extended period of time. You can get into runs where youve got one or two of your top four out, but two or three games. But this is quite a bit more significant.Maurice said Stuarts injury occurred during a fight with Buffalo winger Nicolas Deslauriers late in Winnipegs 5-1 victory over the Sabres on Tuesday.Trouba was shut down earlier this week with an undisclosed pre-existing condition that will also keep him off the ice until February. he was placed on injured reserve retroactive to Sunday. Enstrom (lower body) last played Nov. 23 and could be back skating in early January, while Bogosian (lower body) was injured Dec. 3 and may start skating in mid-January, Maurice said.Jets general manager Kevin Cheveldayoff said trade talks began after Troubas injury and the need to make a move was solidified after Stuarts injury.He also had to keep in mind the NHL has a Christmas roster freeze starting Friday at midnight through Dec. 27.Winnipegs depleted defensive corps was also something he hasnt witnessed before.It has been something that everyone that Ive talked to on the phone at the other end, on the GM side, is kind of shaking their heads and saying, Wow, whats going on there? Cheveldayoff said.But he sees the situation as an opportunity for players to get their chance to step up.You could look at it and say, Oh woe is us, or you could say, Lets try and take a kick at this and see what happens, he said.Weve got a tough schedule ahead of us, theres no question about it, but it is something that, again, as a group these are why these guys play. They want bigger opportunities and they want bigger roles and these guys are going to get it.Harrison, 32, has played 337 NHL games over 10 seasons with Toronto and Carolina, where he was familiar with Maurice when he coached the Hurricanes.Harrison played 20 games for Carolina this season with a goal and three assists. He was on his way to Winnipeg to try to practise with the Jets (16-10-6) on Friday and maybe play that night against the Boston Bruins (16-13-3).Jets defenceman Julien Brouillette, who was called up from the AHLs St. Johns IceCaps on Dec. 4., said hes ready to step in if needed. He practised in a pairing with Grant Clitsome, who just returned from injury for the Buffalo game.Winger Dustin Byfuglien was already moved back to defence after Bogosians injury.Captain Andrew Ladd also hasnt seen so many injuries to players at one position during his 600-plus NHL games.Weve got a lot of depth at that position in the organization, Ladd said. Weve handled it well so far and well need to keep doing it.Adam Pardy said it was hard watching his fellow defencemen drop one by one in such a short time frame.Its a little lonely on this side of the dressing room, thats for sure, when youve only got a couple guys, Pardy said.Its tough, you know, seeing all those guys go down at the same time. Its going to be a little bit of adversity for us in the back end, but weve got a lot of guys that can play.Starting goalie Ondrej Pavelec said the blue-line injuries wont add pressure to himself or backup Michael Hutchinson.Youve got to be sharp every game, Pavelec said. As a goalie on every team, it doesnt make any difference in your game.What Im doing is just focus on myself and I trust the guys they do their job and everything is going to be fine. Theyre great hockey players.Forward Evander Kane didnt practise Thursday, but Maurice said hes fine and will play against Boston. Zack Steffen USA Jersey . - Mike Magee converted two penalty kicks in a 10-minute span of the first half and the Chicago Fire beat Sporting Kansas City 2-1 on Sunday. Custom USA Soccer Jerseys . He had spent 16 days on the disabled list before being activated Thursday. He was batting just .203 when he came to bat in the 11th inning on Sunday. http://www.usasoccerauthority.com/juan-agudelo-usa-jersey/ .com) - Ames, IA (SportsNetwork. Graham Zusi Jersey . -- The Chicago Bears have agreed to terms with safety Brock Vereen and QB David Fales on four-year contracts. Matt Hedges Jersey . DeGrom outpitched Jake Peavy in a tantalizing hitless duel that carried into the seventh inning Saturday night before the New York Mets broke loose and beat the San Francisco Giants 4-2.Denver, CO (SportsNetwork.com) - James Harden scored a season-high 44 points on Thursday and posted his third career triple-double on Saturday. He continued the trend of MVP-like performances by dropping 41 points and 10 assists in the Houston Rockets 115-111 overtime win against the Denver Nuggets on Wednesday. After erupting for 23 points in the first half, Harden was limited to 10 in neaarly 21 second-half minutes.dddddddddddd He also missed a free throw late in regulation that could have sealed the victory. But he scored eight straight Houston points during the extra session to help the Rockets win their third straight game. Dwight Howard added 24 points and 16 rebounds in his second game back from a knee injury, and Patrick Beverley gave 12 points and 12 boards. ' ' '