Winnipeg Jets Mid-Season Report Card
My grading system is based on a few different types of criteria that people may or may not agree with but for the most part it is as basic as “what you see is what you get”. This is not a scientific evaluation based on statistics and analysis from experts in the field. I don’t base my opinions on a newspaper column or a talk show to tell me what I just watched. I do read most of the newspaper articles and I am a TSN sports radio junkie and I love the opinions of the radio personalities and the call-in fans. What does carry weight with me is what I hear from the Coach and the GM even though I may not agree. I realize that everybody views the game differently and have their own favorites and their not so favorites. The beauty of watching sports is there is no right or wrong when you express your opinions on what you like and what you don’t like. My opinions are based on my 50 plus years of viewing the game as Coach (15 years), a WHL Scout (15 years), a Player (15 years), a Fan (50 years) and even a Fantasy GM (35 years). So, I guess what I’m saying is I know what I like and what I don’t like. Listed below is some of the criteria I used in grading this report card.
1. The players position and roll in the line-up for each game … example: top 6 forward, PP.
2. The amount of ice time and hard minutes. example: playing against top lines, PK.
3. Expectations from coaches, media, fans etc.
4. Salary, return on investment (ROI). This may seem unfair and not very popular with the mainstream media but in 1990 the NHLPA decided to introduce salary disclosure. This was to give the players some negotiating leverage when comparing their salary with comparable players around the league. This info from a website like CapGeek.com has now opened up the players to public scrutiny from fans and media so now you had better walk the walk after talking the talk. Players will not get much sympathy from fans today especially after the latest lockout but thats another story. I know I am going to get a ton of heat from those that bother to read this but keep in mind this team is far from the finished product. Most of the players receiving poor grades will probably not be here beyond next year so no long term concern there, the core of this team had decent grades. The Jets record at the time of this report is 12-11-1. This is what I think of this current Jets roster. Please leave your comments in the comment area below, I’d love to hear what Winnipeg’s hockey fans think.
Two players going in opposite directions are Ron Hainsey who started out playing very well and much better than most would have expected, but who’s play has dropped off considerably because of playing too many minutes and Ondre Pavelec who had a miserable start to the season but is definitely trending upwards.
Forwards:
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