Seth Jarvis was one of seven Portland Winterhawks alumni who played at the Olympics, and the Canadian came home with the silver medal. Portland GM-president Mike Johnston shares his insight on Jarvis when he played in the WHL.
Carolina Hurricanes right winger Seth Jarvis wasn't always the talkative character we know today in the NHL.
Before becoming an Olympian and the 16th-best Portland Winterhawks player of all-time, with a penchant for making funny sound bites, Jarvis was a teenager moving from Winnipeg to Oregon to start his WHL career.
"It's interesting to see where he is now because when he came into our organization, he was very quiet, very reserved," said Portland's GM-president, Mike Johnston.
"If you would ask the players in his first two years, they probably would say, 'I hardly ever heard him say a word in the room.' But then, as he came into his last couple of years, his personality really came to the forefront."
Along with some off-ice swagger, Jarvis has been a pretty good player for the Hurricanes and for Team Canada at the past Olympics, as well as the 4 Nations Face-Off in 2025.
"When we were studying him at 15 years of age, the first thing you notice is his skill," he said. He's a very smart player, got excellent puck skills," Johnston said.
Jarvis stood out among the ex-Winterhawks who competed at the Games.
The Winterhawks led the CHL in the number of former players who represented them at the Olympics.
Nine were named to Olympic rosters, but seven participated, with Latvia's Rodrigo Abols and Team USA's Seth Jones being unavailable due to injuries.
Those who participated were Nino Niederreiter, Simon Knak, Oliver Bjorkstrand, Joachim Blichfeld, Rihards Bukarts, Henri Jokiharju and Jarvis.
"We had a couple on Switzerland, a couple on Latvia, a couple in Denmark, so it was spread out amongst teams," Johnston said.
"It was great to see the number of players we had named, and then it was really good to be able to watch them on probably the biggest world stage and one of the better tournaments that I have watched."
What Separates Seth Jarvis From The Rest?
Jarvis had the best finish among Winterhawks alumni who played at the Olympics, earning a silver medal with Canada.
He was added to Canada's roster in place of the injured Brayden Point. Jarvis went on to make five appearances for his country at the Games, recording one assist.
In addition to his Olympic campaign, he was on the roster that won the 4 Nations Face-Off championship in 2025, recording an assist in three games.
Representing Canada at the highest level twice before the age of 25 makes it clear that Jarvis possesses an attractive skill set that sets him apart. Johnston, who coached Jarvis throughout his junior career, spoke about his uniqueness.
"The two things that separate him from me are, one, he's really competitive, really competitive," Johnston said. "Like loose puck battles, going through the net with the puck, he's a very competitive player.
"And then the other thing that separates him, he doesn't have any fear. When he came into our league at 16, he would try and take on the biggest defenseman in the league, go to the net against some of the tougher guys, and he's not afraid to make plays in big moments.
"So just that resolve that all the special players have to be able to be not afraid of the moment and be able to execute in the moment."
What also separates Jarvis from the rest of the pack or players in his tier is his personality.
At times, the 24-year-old likes to keep it loose in his post-game interviews, makes plenty of appearances on the Hurricanes' social media platform and was named to Prime Video's roster for the second season of Faceoff: Inside the NHL.
"He's a genuine guy," Johnston said. "He just does what he thinks. When he's doing an interview, there's no preconceived ideas of what he's going to say how he's going to say it. He just says what he thinks and how he feels. And he's very genuine that way. And I think that's why a lot of people, when they see him on social on that, they take to him because there's nothing fake about him."
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