Mitch Kasprick is now the “Westdale Curmudgeon.“ Odds and Ends, Thoughts, and Questions from this past week in Hockey

I am a fan of the Winnipeg Jets, the Manitoba Moose, and all Team Canada Hockey teams.  I am NOT a fan of Gary Bettman, or as I call him, Count Chocula.  I am a big believer in the 7Ps, or is it the 8Ps?  You’ve been warned.

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1. Jets:  Friday night versus the Carolina Hurricanes, four to six weeks of life without goaltender Connor Hellebuyck officially started for the Winnipeg Jets. 

It was probably smart to have the surgery now and rehab through the Christmas break so he won’t miss as many games. 

Breaking: The @NHLJets are shutting down Connor Hellebuyck in order for him undergo a minor Arthroscopic knee procedure. It is anticipated Hellebuyck will be out 4 to 6 weeks.

— Darren Dreger (@DarrenDreger) November 21, 2025

2. Jets:  The Winnipeg Jets finished their 3-game homestand with a 1-2-0 record and sit in 5th place in the Central Division, just a couple of points outside of a wildcard spot.  The boys now head back out on the road for 5 games visiting Washington, Carolina, Nashville, Buffalo, and Montreal.  I have a very bad feeling about this trip.

3. Jets:  Some good news if you’re an Adam Lowry fan. 

The Winnipeg Jets Hockey Club announced today they have agreed to terms with captain Adam Lowry on a five-year contract extension with an average annual value of $5,000,000. The contract extension will begin in the 2026-27 season.

— Winnipeg Hockey Talk (@WpgHockTalk) November 20, 2025

4. NHL:  From the “Put that in your pipe and smoke it” file. 

Nikolaj “don’t call me Nik” Ehlers, who was one of my favourite players as a Winnipeg Jet.  Nik played in his first game as a Carolina Hurricane versus his old team for the first time in Winnipeg on Friday night, and apparently, I was supposed to give a crap.  I’m glad he got a warm ovation during his video tribute, but I find it hard to feel warm and fuzzy about a player who left us high and dry.  He is gone and I don’t give a #&%! about him, so put that in your pipe and smoke it.

5. Jets:  The DeMelo Files: The truth is out there.

Tuesday night versus Columbus, Miles Wood blew past him like he was standing still and tied the game 1-1 after the Jets dominated the 1st period.

Friday night against Carolina, DD made a terrific breakout pass (got an assist) to Scheif that led to a goal by Josh Morrissey.

Later in that period, he saved a sure goal by swatting a puck out of mid-air that was on its way into an open net.

Sunday afternoon, versus Minnesota, he took an interference penalty that I thought was a weak call, but he lost body position, and the official got fooled.

I rag on DD quite a bit, but overall, I think he had a decent week.

6. Jets:  Question for Scott Arniel:  You’ve been juggling the lines a lot lately in 3rd periods when you’re behind or looking for more offence.  Why not try some new lines and attempt to bolster the 2nd line on a more permanent basis?

7. Jets:  There is a current trend that’s been going on for quite some time, that if you’re in a playoff position on American Thanksgiving, you will indeed make the playoffs.  This Thursday is American Thanksgiving, and I have a bad feeling Friday will show the Jets on the outside looking in.

8. Moose:  The Manitoba Moose won both of their games this week to make it 6 in a row, improving their record to 9-6-2-0.  The Moose are now in a tie for 2nd in the Central Division and are in a tie for 5th in the 17-team Western Conference.  The boys have 4 home games this coming week.  Three up, one down as the Moose got three players ( Brad Lambert,  Parker Ford, and Nikita Chibrikov) back from the parent club, while losing one ( Thomas Milic) to the Jets. 

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9. Jets:  This is getting really old. 

Another kid getting great advice from a delusional agent. Right now, Brad Lambert isn’t even a good AHL player. He’s closer to the ECHL than to the NHL. https://t.co/fdfRAtzQ7V

— Winnipeg Hockey Talk (@WpgHockTalk) November 21, 2025

10. Jets:  I think it’s time to give some props to Alex Iafallo.  AI is the new Mathieu Perrault type of Swiss Army Knife.  Play him on any line, use him in any role, and he just keeps on chugging and never complains.  He is definitely one of my favourite Jets.

11. Jets:  WHT Poll

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12. Jets:  Special Teams:  Rule of thumb.  Have the power play and penalty kill (PK and PP) numbers total at least 100% when added (as your minimum).

• PP: 8th at 23.30% down from 8th at 24.10% last week
• PK: 6th at 83.80% down from 6th 84.10% last week
• FO: 5th at 53.01% up from 7th at 53.00% last week

13. Jets:  Goaltending:

• Connor Hellebuyck:  8-6-0 … 2.51 GAA … .913 SV%
• Eric Comrie:  4-3-0 … 2.87 GAA … .899 SV%

14. Jets:  The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly this past week.

• Good:  I thought the Jets played pretty well last week, but got nothing to show for it.
• Bad:  No puck-luck.  
• Ugly:  0-2 post Helle.

15. Things that make me go hmmm:🤔

In the grand scheme of things, it doesn’t matter, but I was wondering why Frank Seravalli broke the news about Brad Lambert’s trade request, and Darren Dreger broke the story about Helle’s surgery and not one of our local guys.

16. Things that make me go hmmm:🤔Part 2.  

I wonder if it pisses off our local guys?

17. Jets: From the “You want the truth, you can’t handle the truth” file.

We are at the 1/4 pole of the season, and I have to ask myself to put aside my Jonathon Toews bias and ask myself the question.  Is JT working out?  I’m going to ignore the question for now because I might not like the answer.

18. NHL:  Pet Peave:  “The lacrosse line change.”

The lacrosse line change in hockey happens when the team skating from their offensive zone back towards their defensive zone have 2 players jump into the back gate of their players’ bench, while 2 players jump onto the ice out of the front gate, and gain the length of their players’ bench plus the 2-3 steps grace they’re allowed.  The problem is that the 2-3 step grace at both ends has turned into 3-4 steps, then 4-5 steps.  Do you see where I’m going with this?

Friday night in the 3rd period versus Carolina, the Jets had a 2-on-1 developing coming out of their defensive zone when 2 Hurricanes jumped out of the far end of their box while the 2 players they were replacing were still 6 feet away, basically turning a 2-on-1 into a 2-on-3, and it pisses me off even more when the announcers don’t mention it.

Give ’em an inch, and they’ll take a mile, and you know for sure that Count Chocula’s minions will call the first “too many men on the ice” penalty on a lacrosse change in 5 years against the Jets on their upcoming 6-game road trip.  

19. Jets:  Kyle Connor is starting to let some of his old bad habits creep back into his game, and it really showed on the 2 short-handed goals that were scored against the Jets in both their losses this weekend.  I’m not saying the shorties were his fault, but the sight of him dogging it on the backcheck wasn’t a good look. 

20. Jets:  Neal Pionk left the game after his 2nd shift in the 1st period and did not return.  Pionk is day-to-day with the injury, but there will be an update after the team practices on Monday afternoon.

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