By Gary Lawless

JASON JAFFRAY'S hold on an NHL job remains tenuous but for a guy who had to prove a lot of people wrong to get there in the first place, it's just the next step in his evolution.

"I'm here game-to-game. That's how I look at it," said Jaffray. "It's the opportunity of a lifetime and I don't want to look back and say I could have given more. It's been incredible. The last couple of games I've played on a line with Taylor Pyatt and Markus Naslund. Naslund is one of the best players in the NHL. If you had told me at the start of the year I'd be on a line with Markus Naslund, I would have laughed at you."

Jaffray spent five seasons at different levels of pro hockey and most of the last three campaigns with the Manitoba Moose before getting his crack with the Canucks. In 12 games with Vancouver the 26-year-old has two goals and three assists.

"Jaffs has exceeded our expectations in every way," Canucks coach Alain Vigneault told the Free Press on Thursday.

"He's come in and done a real nice job for us. I wouldn't say skating is his forte but he gets where he needs to go and when he crosses the other team's blue line he really knows where to go and where to put the puck. In his time with the Moose we've been able to see him grow as an offensive player and he's learned to be a real responsible player on the defensive side."

Nice words from the head coach, but for Jaffray it has never come easy and the next little while will be tense for the Albertan. The Canucks claimed centre Kris Beech off waivers on Thursday and he'll immediately compete with Jaffray for a roster spot.

"We've had so many injuries in Vancouver and Manitoba, we're bringing Beech in for depth," said Vigneault.

Jaffray, once cut adrift by the San Jose Sharks due to an immigration snafu, understands the fickle nature of pro hockey.

"We're scared to buy too many groceries. We're living in a hotel and you never know when things will change," said Jaffray, who has his wife and young daughter with him in Vancouver. "I have to play every shift like it's my last and try to create offence while playing with these players."

In an effort to try and turn heads, Jaffray has at times gone to extreme lengths during his stay with the Canucks.

"My first game on Hockey Night in Canada, we're in Edmonton and they've got a camera on my family," tells Jaffray. "I get a chance for a shift in overtime and I get in a fight with Steve Staios. He punched me in the head a few times so I had to drop the gloves. Skating to the penalty box, I was cursing myself.

"But my buddies that were at the game, they were talking about that fight like I'd scored the winner in overtime. So it was fun. But the next day, coach Vigneault walked by me and said, 'quit trying to be a fighter and score some goals.' So that's what I'm trying to focus on."

Jaffray and his family had to put together a makeshift Christmas but he gave his wife a gift they'll never forget.

"When I broke into hockey I made $500 a week in the ECHL. After tax it was just over $300 but I thought it was a million. Until I had to start paying my bills," recalls Jaffray.

"Our Christmas was kind of thrown up in the air and we really only had about four presents under a little tree. I told my wife that she could open my first NHL paycheque. It's a long way from the East Coast league and it was one of my best moments in hockey."

gary.lawless@freepress.mb.ca

Four fill bill for Canucks

The Canucks count four players who have been with the Moose at some point this season.

They're all missed, but it's difficult to say if or when they'll return:

* Jason Jaffray: It might be a little early to label Jaffray an NHL regular. He's a playmaker with a nose for the net and would be a fixture on Manitoba's top line.

* Mason Raymond: Vancouver loves this speedy rookie. Still a little unseasoned, but there's no question he makes things happen offensively. Capable of dominating at the AHL level.

* Mike Brown: A forechecking hammer. Brown can change a game with a bodycheck or a left jab. Energy personified. The Moose miss Brown big time. No one has stepped in to fill the void.

* Alex Edler: The big Swedish blue-liner was scheduled to anchor the Moose defence but has been with the Canucks most of the season. He'd make a huge difference for Manitoba, but don't count on seeing him any time soon.