Some players might pout upon being sent back to the AHL after their NHL debut. Others take it as motivation. Given the near universal praise of his work ethic from coaches past and present, it should come as no surprise that Tanner Jeannot appears to have done the latter. 

The 23-year-old native of Oxbow got into one game for the Nashville Predators earlier on this season before being returned to the AHL's Chicago Wolves. Since his return to the Wolves' lineup, he's picked up where he left off and then some, continuing a torrid scoring pace. 

Jeannot leads the Wolves in scoring with 19 points in just 12 games. His next closest teammate, Predators 2015 third round pick Tommy Novak, has three fewer points despite two more games played. 

Those 19 points are just one off the career high Jeannot set in the COVID-shortened 2019-20 season, but those 20 points took him 57 games to amass. His career high in goals coming into this season was seven, scored in 34 games in his rookie pro campaign. This year, he's got nine. 

Jeannot hasn't been inactive with the rough stuff either, as befits his 6-foot-2, 210-pound frame. A proponent of the physical game and always willing to stand up for his teammates, he has 33 PIMs this season, just six fewer than he had in 37 games as a rookie pro in 2018-19. 

This season, the Milwaukee Admirals, Nashville's usual NHL affiliate, did not play due to COVID-19. As such, Jeannot is sharing a Chicago Wolves roster with prospects of both the Predators and Carolina Hurricanes. His teammates this season have included multiple NHL draft picks from both franchises, including several first rounders. Despite the elevated talent level, however, Jeannot has led the charge. 

Since the start of the campaign, Jeannot has also served as assistant captain for the Wolves. The Wolves are 14-2-1 on the campaign to lead the AHL's Central Division and hold one of the best winning percentages in the entire league.