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Scheifele could get quite the early opportunity with Jets

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Mark Scheifele isn’t certain that he’ll even be able to stick with the Winnipeg Jets full-time in 2013-14, but if it all works out, he could be primed to make an early splash.

That’s especially true if the 20-year-old keeps the same linemates he skated with this weekend. The Winnipeg Free Press reports coach Claude Noel was impressed with what he saw from Scheifele alongside Evander Kane and Devin Setoguchi.

“They created some offence and I thought Scheifele really played a lot better in the third period,” Noel said of their work during Saturday’s Hockeyville contest against the Washington Capitals. “He came around and they looked like they were generating some chemistry as the game went on.”

That trio created two goals and five points yesterday, certainly a promising start.

While it’s crucial to note that Scheifele isn’t a guarantee to make the team in his third training camp attempt, it’s difficult to imagine him being demoted once again. The Jets didn’t make big offseason acquisitions and he’s done everything they can ask for at other levels.

Really, it’s hard not to pencil him as a serious 2014 Calder Trophy candidate, especially if he spends a lot of time with Kane and Setoguchi.

Follow James O’Brien @cyclelikesedins