‘There shouldn’t be any panic’: With deep lineup, the Winnipeg Jets are chasing playoff glory
The Winnipeg Jets have been one of the most exciting teams this season.
After the season concluded last year, there were more questions than answers about the team’s direction. After requiring a wild-card spot to get into the postseason, they were knocked out by the eventual Stanley Cup champions, the Vegas Golden Knights.
Rumors immediately began to swirl, and many didn’t expect the team to be playoff-bound this year. However, after signing their pending free agents, Mark Scheifele and Connor Hellebuyck, there was a new belief in their locker room.
After having a solid first half, and adding Sean Monahan and Tyler Toffoli ahead of the trade deadline, this team looks like a legit cup contender.
“We know what it looks like when we play the right way,” Nikolaj Ehlers told Daily Faceoff. “It doesn’t matter how good we play; the other team is always going to get some chances, and when you have two great goalies like we do, it makes it hard for the other team.”
Being around the Jets, they give off a very calm persona even though they’re battling for first place in the Central Division. Ehlers, Kyle Connor, and Josh Morrissey are among those who probably deserve more love for what they’ve accomplished this season as the experienced veterans they are.
Ehlers has tallied 20 goals this season, which is second on the team behind Connor, who has 30 of his own. Morrissey continues to build off of his incredible year last season, sitting second in scoring with 57 points.
“It’s a positive thing,” Ehlers said. “For me, like any other guy on this team and in this league is trying to do their best every single night. I know sometimes it doesn’t go your way, but you keep on trying and that’s just the hard work that goes into it.”
This well-rounded group has little to no glaring issues on the roster. Earlier this year, the Jets went 34 consecutive games while allowing three goals or fewer a game. They were the poster for defensive hockey in the NHL.
“When we play together, we play unbelievably defensively and create a lot of chances from the other team’s mistakes. That’s exactly what I’m talking about. That’s what we have to find again. Here, in the last little bit, we’ve kind of gotten away from it”, Ehlers continued.
There’s a lot of buzz around how tight the division race is right now. But at the end of the day, the players know it doesn’t matter where you finish in the standings as long as you’re in the big dance.
“It’s not something that I talk about. It would be incredible to be the first team, but that doesn’t mean anything if you lose in the first round,” Ehlers said. “We focus more on the way that we want to play over these last 15 games than look at the wins and the losses”.
Not only is it essential to play the right way on the ice during this time of year, but it’s also paramount to have off-ice camaraderie. They go golfing a lot as a team and rely on Morrissey to book all the excellent restaurant reservations.
“There’s always pranks going around. I think that’s also a mix of everyone in here. You find somebody you maybe want to pick on a bit and have some fun with it,” Ehlers said jokingly. He’s been a victim of getting chirped for his choice of putting ketchup on his pasta, which is something that I can personally defend him on, as he was kind enough to defend me.
Sat down 1-on-1 with #GoJetsGo Nikolaj Ehlers to talk about their expectations.
I had to ask him if he’d go on record defending my ketchup on pasta choice:
“Oh 100%, you can ask any of the Euro’s in here. Ketchup on pasta, especially on the meat sauce is unbelievable. These…
“We got a great group in here and hopefully we can do some great things later on,” Ehlers said.
In what was a possible Stanley Cup Final preview, the Jets had a solid showing at Madison Square Garden last night in a 4-2 win against the Rangers. Thanks to the strong play from Hellebuyck, who stopped 38 of 40 shots, and a hat trick from Scheifele, the Jets felt great about their game.
The Rangers threw everything they could in the dying minutes of the game, but the Jets didn’t have any panic in their game. Why would they panic with a goalie as strong as Hellebuyck?
“When you got a goalie like Helly in the pipes, you’re pretty confident,” Scheifele said. “We know our system, we know what to do. It’s a matter of doing the right things, knowing where every guy is going to be, and being consistent with each other. When you’re doing that – there shouldn’t be any panic.”
The Jets are a team that should be taken very seriously – especially with Hellebuyck as their backbone.
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