Odds and Ends about the Winnipeg Jets and the NHL –
Some random facts and a few thoughts about the Winnipeg Jets, the Manitoba Moose, and the National Hockey League.
1. The Winnipeg Jets had an interesting week collecting points in all three games going 1-0-2 and are now 5-3-2 overall for the season.
2. I find it strange that the Twitter GMs are surprised and critical when the Winnipeg Jets lose or get outplayed by teams that are actually better than them. Is it that important to push your own agenda or narrative? The Jets are a very talented but flawed team with poor coaching. It is what it is.
3. There are certain players on the Winnipeg Jets that are immune to criticism and others that can do nothing right. I’m as guilty of this as the next guy. We all do it and we all have our favourites. My whipping boy is Toby and I was extremely hard on Wheeler in the early years. For me, Ehlers, Laine, and Josh can do no wrong. My point is that during a bad game or a bad streak if you listed every fan’s whipping boys it would eventually include almost every player on the team. Nobody is immune during the bad times and some are never immune during the good times.
4. If you told me the Jets would roll into Pittsburgh and Columbus and only give up one goal in regulation in both games, I would assume they were coming home with FOUR points. Unfortunately, this was not the case. They managed two overtime losses after the Jets offense went awol in those two games.
5. Paul Maurice needs to make one powerplay unit using his five best players and forget about two units splitting the powerplay time. This means #27 is on the #1 unit along with #55, #26, #29 and how about trying #44 on the point. I love Buff but he doesn’t have to be on the first unit every time. He is the last remaining constant of a Jets PP that has struggled since day 1.
The Jets did manage a powerplay goal (1 for 3) in their 7-1 win against Pittsburgh BUT went 0 for 8 in two games that were 1-1 in regulation. The PP could have been a difference maker in the Columbus game but went 0 for 6. Special teams have haunted this team for years and all we are asking for is league average. Is that unreasonable?
6. On the bright side: The Winnipeg Jets are finished with the Columbus Blue Jackets and the Pittsburgh Penguins for this season.
7. Congrats to Brendan Lemieux on scoring his first goal in the NHL versus the Pittsburgh Penguins on Sunday night.
8. Pet peeve: Last week while watching the Coyotes at Rangers game, a broken stick lay on the ice for over a minute during an Arizona Coyotes powerplay. It was in the worst possible spot for the Coyotes point men. It was like an extra penalty killer for the Rangers. There are FOUR men in stripes and not one of them made an attempt to pick the damn thing up when the opportunity arose. I’m not even sure players realize they can actually move the debris. We see this all too often during the season. C’MON GARY!
9. Steve Mason played a very good game in Columbus but still remains winless. He has a record of 0-3-1 with a GAA of 4.84 and a SV% of .872.
10. Blake Wheeler had quite a night against the Penguins on Sunday night. Wheeler recorded his second career hat trick but he also set a Winnipeg Jets record. He was the first Jets player to record a hat-trick in the first period of a game and I believe it was also the fastest hat trick in Jets history.
11. Jacob Trouba is going through a little stretch where he looks a little jittery and unsure at times. He’s not playing bad but he makes me wince 3-4 times a game. I wonder what’s going on?
12. I would like to see Paul Maurice flip Nikolaj Ehlers and Kyle Connor in the line-up every once in a while.
13. FYI: Rule 53: No player can throw, shoot, or knock any piece of equipment towards an opponent, or they will be given a minor penalty. The rule specifically states that moving or shooting the equipment off to the side of the ice so that it does not interfere with the play is allowed. (see #8)
14. Glass half full or half empty? The Winnipeg Jets are 5-3-2 after their first 10-game segment but they have actually won five games and lost five games but then again they have garnered points in seven out of ten games. Are you okay with their start?
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15. Question for Kevin Cheveldayoff: When are you going to start trading prospects that still have perceived value that don’t fit into your plans? Why have them waste away in this organisation becoming worthless or career AHLers? (or maybe we just think they have value … rose coloured glasses and all that)
16. Connor Hellebuyck has not lost a game in regulation time yet this season. His record is an impressive 5-0-1 with a GAA of 2.05 and a SV% of .937. So far this season, Helle looks like money.
17. Bryan Little is doing a nice job in the faceoff circle but he is off to a slow start offensively. Five points in ten games aren’t awful but playing with Ehlers and Laine, I expect a little more. He’s always been streaky so I would guess he’s due for a hot streak.
18. Twitter blows up in every NHL market after losses and not just Winnipeg’s. I find it extremely amusing to read. It’s hilarious, we all have the same complaints. All you have to do is insert the coaches name in the blank space. What is _____ thinking, blah, blah, blah, blah? It’s actually vicious at times. You gotta love the Twitterverse.
19. It was nice to see some secondary scoring versus the Penguins on Sunday night but if you would have told me the Jets scored seven goals and Ehlers or Laine had ZERO points I would have said … “ya, good one”.
20. Special Teams: Rule of thumb. Have the two red numbers total at least 100% when added. (as your minimum)
- PP: 23rd at 14.7% … down from 18th at 17.4% last week.
- PK: 24th at 77.8% … up from 31th at 72.0% last week.
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Thanks, Mitch
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They have success scoring in the first against Toronto and stop a few PP’s they’re 6-2-2. They’re playing strong for long periods of games. They scored 7 goals without Laine and Ehlers scoring. That’s huge in my mind. I predicted they’d be fighting for first. And Hellebyuck is looking amazing. I think Mason has played well his last two starts as well. You’re always going to have bad breaks and bad games but they look good. I dont care if the Penguins played the night before or not they whipped the Stanley cup champions 7-1. Anyone worrying about useless stats like corsi should start watching the games.
yes … there are a lot of ebbs and flows in a game and even in a season …. the better the team gets the less frequent they become BUT for me, this team will not be a contender until both their special team units are at “league average” or better.
I don’t believe in overall stats because horrible special teams from a couple of games can drop you down. I take it game by game and they’ve been pretty good lately.
the PK has been okay but not the PP … I’ll take a better PK over the PP any day though
Totally like your #5
thanks … it’s not asking too much, is it?
Curious about #15. Which players do you not consider part of the plan? Would you trade for a vet or a younger prospect? If we’re talking about Hutch, then I completely agree!!!
Hutch’s prospect days are over … he’s just an AHLer for now … not much value. Petan is a different story … if he’s not part of the plan then move him … I’m curious what Petan’s value is around the league right now.