Tag Archives: NHL

Some Fans Have Quit. The Jets Haven’t.

Posted on March 24, 2012 by Scott Taylor| Leave a comment
141778042 slide 300x214 Some Fans Have Quit. The Jets Havent.

The Caps scored first, the Jets scored last.

LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. — Sitting in the ESPN Restaurant on the Boardwalk at Lake Buena Vista on Friday night, it was quite difficult to watch the Winnipeg Jets for the first 25 minutes of their game with the Washington Capitals.

It was 3-0 Washington and the Jets 2011-12 season looked deader than Charles Dickens’ coffin nail. The Jets had no answer for Alexander Ovechkin and the Capitals, playing at home against a team that was 11-20-4 on the road this season, were about to put it on cruise control.

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Jim Slater answers the bell against Brooks Laich.

Trouble was, the Jets didn’t capitulate. Cruise control was exactly what the Jets third and fourth lines were after. Ben Mxwell scored his first goal of the year at 7:01 of the second period, then Bryan Little scored his 22nd at 8:12.

Still, the Jets looked dead. Washington played well enough defensively to hold the Jets back and it carried on at 3-2 until late in the third.

That’s when Spencer Machacek scored his first goal of the season at 16:15 and suddenly the Jets had a point and a trip to overtime.

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Tim Stapleton celebrates the winner.

In overtime, Tim Stapleton scored and, almost unbelievably, the Jets had erased a 3-0 lead and won 4-3.

Granted, the Capitals still “earned” a point and remained four points ahead of Winnipeg in the race for the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. And yes, the Buffalo Sabres won again and remained four points ahead of Winnipeg. And yes the Jets are currently in 10th place in the East with a difficult assignment in Nashville tonight. And yes, with only eight games remaining, the 35-31-8 Jets are up against it.

However, just imagine what would have happened if the Capitals had held on to that 3-0 lead and the Jets were now seven back of Washington and six back of Buffalo in the East and 10 behind Florida in the Southeast Division? Right now the Jets just need a little help. If they’d folded their tents on Friday, they’d need a miracle.

It’s interesting, I suppose, but over the past few weeks I’ve noticed, both at my Facebook page and on Twitter, that a lot of Winnipeg fans were bailing on their hockey team. That doesn’t mean they won’t fill MTS Centre for the final three games of the season. It just means that they’ve resolved themselves to the likelihood that the Jets won’t make the playoffs.

It’s a good thing the Jets don’t feel that way.

“I saw us go into desperation mode,” Stapleton told nhl.com when asked about the Jets season-saving comeback on Friday night. “I don’t think I’ve really seen that all year between us. We were just pressing and pressing and we stuck to the game plan, just throwing shots on net.”

Winnipeg, outshot Washington 17-2 in the third period and had the only two shots in overtime. The second one, a high snap shot by Stapleton off a great pass from Dustin Byfuglien won it for the Jets.

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The Jets Didn't Quit

It was a wonderful victory, but for the second straight game, one thing was disturbing: Three of the Jets’ four goals came from the fourth line.

It was a great win, a hard-fought and gutsy win, but at some point on this road trip, the Jets top six forwards are going to have to show up and play well for 60 minutes.

Of course, if that happens, there is no telling how good the Jets could be.

Now, let’s go watch the Jets and Predators.

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The NHL Playoff Difference Makers

Posted on March 16, 2012 by Scott Taylor| Leave a comment
steven stamkos 300x226 The NHL Playoff Difference Makers

Steven Stamkos

TAMPA – On a night when there were significantly more Toronto Maple Leafs fans inside the Tampa Bay Times Forum than Tampa Bay Lightning fans (yes, it’s the NHL of the 2010s), you have to wonder if the Lightning has the jam to reach the post-season.

After losing to the Leafs this week, the answer is, “Probably not.” The Lightning are in 11th place in the Eastern Conference, seven points back of the eighth-place Washington Capitals and still have a slight chance to reach the post-season – very slight after losing 3-1 to the Leafs on Wednesday. Amazingly, the Lightning also have the only 50-goal scorer in the NHL and tend to win a lot of games at home. But with an inability to win on the road, you get the sense that Tampa won’t be around by April 8.

The National Hockey League playoff competitors will be determined on or before April 7. That’s the last night of the 2011-12 NHL Marathon and the last chance any team will have to reach the Stanley Cup tournament.

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Likely NHL MVP Evgeni Malkin

Now, a big scorer like Steven Stamkos could chance all that. Stamkos is tied with Evgeni Malkin in scoring and leads everybody in the league with 50 goals (Malkin is second with 38). If the Lightning could get some kind of production – any kind of production – from their second, third and fourth lines, this team might make a run. But than again without NHL-level goaltending and with three AHL defensemen in the lineup, the Lightning probably aren’t good enough despite Stamkos’ presence.

Still, Stamkos is one of the players who could make a difference down the stretch.

There are now four weekends remaining in the season. In the East, there are 11 teams either jockeying for position or fighting for the final playoff spots. In the West, St. Louis looks like a first-place finisher, but 10 other teams are either battling for position or desperately grasping for a playoff spot.

In a league with so many teams still in the hunt, the final few weeks of the season should produce some dramatic play. It certainly will produce its share of heroes.

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Jarome Iginla

And with that in mind, we’re going to look into our crystal ball and try to determine which players will make a difference over the final month of the season. As fantasy players we’re always looking  to take a few shots in the dark and of course, we always find ourselves depending on the best players to BE the best players when the chips are down. It’s all about points in the playoffs and we need the guys who are going to produce.

Well, the chips are down and these 10 NHL players will have the biggest impact on who makes the playoffs, who doesn’t and where those teams finish (Note: Because they are already locks, we will ignore the stars of the St. Louis Blues, New York Rangers, Pittsburgh Penguins, Philadelphia Flyers, New Jersey Devils, Vancouver Canucks, Detroit Red Wings and Nashville Predators):

1. Jarome Iginla, Calgary Flames: He is still the face of the franchise. Iginla has 30 goals and 31 assists and while Olli Jokinen, Alex Tanguay and Curtis Glencross have all had a lot to do with the Flames run to the post-season, the team will pass or fail with Iginla.

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Ondrej Pavelec

2. Ondrej Pavelec, Winnipeg Jets: A second round draft pick out of Kladno, Czech Republic, Pavelec has been great at home and shaky on the road. So far this season, he has a goals against average at home of 2.24 and a save percentage of .925. On the road, his GAA is 3.38 and his save percentage is .896. He must go blind in other buildings. Still, he’s the favorite of the Winnipeg fans when it comes to Jets MVP. If he learns to play on the road, the Jets will make the playoffs.

3. Semyon Varlamov, Colorado Avalanche: The 23-year-old Russian has 23 wins this season and is 8-0 in shootouts this year. It doesn’t matter what he does during regulation as long as he can get the Avalanche (who are 9-0 in shootouts this season) past overtime. If he does, the Avs will make the playoffs.

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Joe Thornton

4. Joe Thornton, San Jose Sharks: He’s the team’s leading scorer with 16 goals and 51 assists. He’s never been a big goal scorer and he’ll soon pass his point total from last year, but he’s nowhere near the 114 points he got in 2006-07. If Thornton can light a fire under this Sharks team, they should prevail and reach the post-season. If he can’t, they’ll be playing Pebble Beach in mid-April.

5. Jonathan Quick, Los Angeles Kings: Even though the Kings are 33-25-12 and battling for the final playoff spot in the West, Quick has been among the top goaltenders all season. He’s 29-19-11, but has a monster save percentage of .929 and a goals against average of just 2.00. The Kings can’t score, so Quick is going to have to get them past San Jose, Calgary and Colorado if L.A. is to get a sniff of the playoffs.

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Alexander Ovechkin

6. Alexander Ovechkin, Washington Capitals: What can you say about Ovie? When he plays well, the Caps win. When he doesn’t, they lose. He has 29 goals and 24 assists and is having the worst offensive year of his career. And yet, if the Capitals are to reach the post-season, it’s the 26-year-old Russian superstar who will get them there.

7. Ryan Miller, Buffalo Sabres: Miller is 9-1-2 in his last 12 games and as a result, the Sabres are back in the playoff hunt. After a slow start, he’s now 25-18-6 with a .915 save percentage and a 2.60 goals against average. If he stays hot, Buffalo could surprise.

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Erik Karlsson

8. Erik Karlsson, Ottawa Senators: Now in his third season, the 21-year-old Swede is being discussed as a Norris Trophy candidate. He leads all NHL defensemen in scoring (seventh overall in scoring) with 19 goals and 51 assists and he’s a terrific plus-15. Karlsson’s break-out year is one of the biggest reasons Ottawa is just two points behind second-place/first-place Boston in the East/Northeast.

9. Loui Eriksson, Dallas Stars: He has 25 goals and 39 assists and is the biggest offensive threat on a Dallas team that tends to think defense first. He’s the 19th overall scorer in the NHL and if Dallas is going to finish third in the West, Eriksson is the key.

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Mike Smith

10. Mike Smith, G, Phoenix Coyotes: A 6-foot-4, 220-pound goaltender who struggled so badly with Tampa last year that he was sent to Norfolk of the AHL, Smith is 29, experienced and never quite reached the level that most NHL insiders believed he could. This year, however, he’s been brilliant. He has a 2.34 goals against average and a .925 save percentage and he’s won 31 games. Who would have thought? If he continues to play this well, the Coyotes will make the playoffs.

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Jets Must Get Six Points At Home This Week

Posted on March 11, 2012 by Scott Taylor| 1 Comment
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Claude Noel

The Winnipeg Jets will play three straight games at home this week. They must win all three.

They open up Wednesday against a pretty good Dallas Stars team, play a huge four-point game against the Washington Capitals  on Friday night and then finish it up with a game next Sunday, the 18th, against the 13th-place Carolina Hurricanes.

Based on how things look today (Sunday, March 11), the Jets will need to win all three if they expect to be playing after April 7. It’s not an impossible task, especially with that huge seventh-man behind them at MTS Centre, but it will be a test. Dallas is no pushover and Washington is playing better hockey these days.

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Jets lose to Calgary

The problem of course, is that the Jets have just come off a terrible western road swing. They needed a split and they got bupkis. A tough 3-2 loss at Vancouver last Thursday and then a 5-3 loss in Calgary on Friday was hugely disappointing for everyone in Winnipeg, but in fairness, the loss to Calgary did result in one of the great responses to any reporter’s question in hockey history.

After the loss on Friday night, Jets coach Claude Noel was asked how disappointed he was about losing two straight games on the road. (Yes, I know, it’s a dumb question, but it’s asked more often than you might think.)

Noel responded to the Calgary Herald with this gem: “How would you like me to answer that? Do you want me to say medium, large? How would you like me to say that? How disappointed are you? Is there a level there? Is it a 10 out of 10? Would you like to say six out of 10? I mean how disappointed do you need to be?”

Dumb questions deserve dumb answers. The trouble with that answer is that it was absolutely brilliant. How do you feel? How disappointed are you? On a scale of 1-10? Those are questions asked by reporters who really didn’t have any idea what they were watching.

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Jets will need to win without Chris Thorburn.

The fact is, Noel was extremely disappointed. After all, those two road losses put the Jets behind the eight-ball. Heading into Sunday night’s slate of 11 NHL games, the Jets are in ninth place, deadlocked with the Buffalo Sabres at 32-29-8 (72 points). They are two points behind eighth-place Washington (the Caps have a game in hand) and they are now third in the Southeast Division, three points back of first-place Florida, two back of second-place Washington and the Panthers have two games in hand.

If Florida beats Carolina at home on Sunday night and Washington beats Toronto (both teams should win), the Jets will need all three victories this week just to keep pace.

Considering Winnipeg, which is now  11-19-4 on the road this season, will play seven of their last 10 on the road after this three-game homestand, three victories are almost imperative. And they will have to do it without hard-checking Chris Thorburn.

History says the Jets need 92 points to make the playoffs. If they add six points this week, they’ll need 14 out of a possible 20 with seven games on the road down the stretch.

It’s not going to be easy.

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Here is The Jets Road to the Playoffs.

Posted on March 9, 2012 by Scott Taylor| 2 Comments

The Jets don’t need a miracle, they just need five great weeks.

Ondrej+Pavelec+Winnipeg+Jets+v+Philadelphia+quT8cH9bfYXl 300x231 Here is The Jets Road to the Playoffs.

Ondrej Pavelec

WINNIPEG – In a city that has gone absolutely crazy over the return of the National Hockey League, Winnipeg Jets fans are now of the mind that they might have to purchase playoff tickets.

OK, to be fair, there is a while to go yet. The Jets have 14 games remaining and eight of them are on the road. However, at 32-28-8 after Thursday night’s 3-2 loss in Vancouver, the Jets are solidly in eighth place in the East and have a legitimate shot at playing in late April.

We are now just 14-16 games shy of the 2012 post-season and the contenders and pretenders still haven’t been separated. OK, OK, after the Leafs blew a 2-0 lead in Pittsburgh on Wednesday night and fell 3-2 to the Penguins, it looks like they’re done.

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Randy Carlyle

What started out as a promising week for the Leafs, after that 3-1 victory at Montreal last Saturday, has turned into a nightmare. A 5-4 loss to Boston at home, a 3-2 loss in Pittsburgh and Joffrey Lupul’s separated shoulder has put a damper on the firing of Ron Wilson and the hiring of Randy Carlyle. The Leafs now need a miracle … along with two more front-line defensemen and a No. 1 goaltender.

However, besides the Jets, there are three other teams in the playoff hunt in the East – Washington, Buffalo and Tampa.

Here’s what’s happened this week: With Washington’s win on Thursday night, the Jets and Capitals are tied for eighth-place in points, but Washington has more wins and has played one less game so the Caps have a hold on eighth place. Buffalo is now two points back of the Jets and Capitals while Tampa trails by three.

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Philly shut out Florida 5-0.

Meanwhile, The Jets remain two points back of Florida in the race for first in the Southeast Division, but even though Florida was massacred 5-0 by Philadelphia on Thursday night, the Panthers still have two games in hand.

So what are the chances of any of these teams making the playoffs? Well, let’s go to Vegas.

Oddsmakers in Vegas don’t think about hockey very often, but they do occasionally think about the odds of teams winning the Stanley Cup. The last time those odds were set, here’s what they looked like for the four teams in the race for that final playoff spot in the East: Washington 20/1, Winnipeg was 60/1 (tied with Montreal, Phoenix, Dallas and Toronto), Buffalo was 75/1 and Tampa was 75/1.

I don’t say this very often about my friends in Las Vegas, but that’s a crock.

Not one of these teams should be as high as 20/1. In fact, I would expect Tampa to be 100/1 by now.

However, I’m not going to sit here and suggest the Jets have the best chance. In fact, I’m willing to take a very close look at what the Jets have left this season and concede that unless they figure out a way to start winning on the road, they don’t have a hope.

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Claude Noel

Jets coach Claude Noel, who should be considered in the Adams Trophy voting as coach of the year, said this after the Jets beat Buffalo 3-1 this week: “We have to take this confidence level and take the will that we played with at home and do the job on the road,” Noel said. ” You have to feel pretty good about where our team’s at and if we play with the same passion and energy — we don’t have the fans with us, but we know they’ll be cheering us from here — we’ve got a chance.”

Based on what happened in Vancouver Thursday night (Winnipeg was outshot 45-32), the Jets have big trouble ahead. But in order to get a handle on where all of these teams in the Eastern race will finish, you must look at everyone’s schedule and what they’ve done at home and on the road this season (BTW: It’s expected that any team in the playoffs will have to garner at least 90 points). It will also help you determine which players you should get ready to select in the playoffs.

3. Florida Panthers (31-23-12): The Panthers are first in the Southeast Division and therefore third in the East, but they aren’t guaranteed a spot in the post-season either. They are only two points ahead of Winnipeg and Washington in the Southeast although they have a game in hand with the Caps and two in hand on the Jets. The Panthers have 16 games remaining, eight at home against Carolina, Toronto, Boston, Buffalo, Edmonton, the Islanders, Winnipeg and Carolina again. That’s seven of eight at home against teams below them in the standings. 5/1 to make it.

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Alexander Ovechkin

8. Washington Capitals (33-28-6): I get asked the same question everywhere I go and I have to answer the same way. When someone asks, “What’s wrong with Alex Ovechkin?” my response is always the same, “I have no clue.” Now, to be fair, someone lit a fire under Ovechkin in overtime on Thursday night as the Caps beat Tampa 3-2 on Ovi’s winner. It was his 27th goal of the year in a season in which scoring is down everywhere except in Steven Stamkos’ world. Washington is 7-9-2 since the first of February and yet they’re still eighth (by wins and games played) and they’ll finish the season with only seven of 15 games at home. Considering they are a lousy 11-18-3 on the road, the Caps are no guarantee to make the playoffs. Unless, of course, Alexander the Great decides to do it himself. 15/1 to make it.

9. Winnipeg Jets (32-28-8): After 68 games, the Jets are 21-10-4 at home and 11-18-4 on the road. You can see the difference in this team’s home and road records by looking at goaltender Ondrej Pavelec’s splits. At home, Pavelec is 17-9-3 with three shutouts, a goals against average of 2.25 and a save percentage of .925. On the road, he’s 8-13-4 with one shutout, a goals against average of 3.31 and a save percentage of .899. In Winnipeg, it’s all about goaltending and this goalie (or backup Chris Mason) has to play eight of his final 14 games away from MTS Centre. Interestingly, the Jets play three games at home this coming week and then play seven of their last 10 on the road. 15/1 to make it.

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Ryan Miller

10. Buffalo Sabres (31-29-8): The Sabres made a good run to get back into the race thanks to the brilliance of Ryan Miler, but they play eight of their final 14 on the road. Now, to be fair, the Sabres are a respectable 14-18-1 on the road this season, but it’s obvious that because none of these teams from 8-11 have been .500 on the road this season there is no reason to believe they’ll suddenly get it figured out. The Sabres are 18-5-3 since the first of February, but have lost two of their last three. Any run to the playoffs will start with the goaltender. 25/1 to make it

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Steven Stamkos

11. Tampa Bay Lightning (31-29-7): The Lightning have a very nice schedule to finish the season. After all, starting Saturday night this week, the Lightning play seven straight at home and the Lightning are 20-10-2 at the Tampa Bay Times Forum this season. However, they’d better make some hay during that stretch because they play only two of their final eight at home and finish the season at Montreal, at Toronto and at Winnipeg and the Lightning are a dreadful 11-19-5 on the road this season. That final game on April 7 at the MTS Centre could be for eighth-place in the East. Of course, by then, Steven Stamkos will be chasing down 60 goals so it might have even more drama. 20/1 to make it.

(On Monday, we’ll check out the Western Conference.)

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Homestand Over, Jets Get Job Done.

Posted on March 5, 2012 by Scott Taylor| Leave a comment
140733014 slide 223x300 Homestand Over, Jets Get Job Done.

Andrew Ladd scores the opening goal.

The Winnipeg Jets got the job done. Now the playoffs look more like a legitimate goal.

Monday night at MTS Centre, Blake Wheeler and Chris Thorburn scored beautiful third-period goals as the Jets beat the visiting Buffalo Sabres 3-1.

With the win, the Jets improved to 32-27-8 and with 72 points are solidly in eighth place in the National Hockey League’s Eastern Conference.  They now trail the Florida Panthers by two points in the race for first in the Southeast Division, but the Panthers have two games in hand.

There is no doubt the Jets did exactly what they had to do during the just-completed eight-game homestand. Winnipeg went 5-1-2 in that stretch and gave themselves a legitimate opportunity to make the playoffs.

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Ondrej Pavelec got the job done.

Tuesday night, however, will be telling. Carolina is at Washington, Ottawa plays at Tampa Bay and Boston plays at Toronto. That means the three other teams (beside Buffalo) that are chasing the Jets get a chance to stay in the hunt or remain three, four and five points behind. All three teams have two games in hand and like the Jets, all three teams have to win every time they step onto the ice.

However, reality also sets in for the Jets. Winnipeg plays nine of their final 15 games on the road. The Jets are 11-17-4 on the road this season. That’s not good. But that doesn’t mean that they can’t pick it up.

The Jets get two tough road games later this week. They go to Vancouver on Thursday and then back to Calgary on Friday. At this stage of the season they need wins, no matter what the situation but those wins won’t come easy this week.

Still, after Monday night’s game, it was time for Jets head coach Claude Noel to celebrate a great team effort.

Claude Noel 300x169 Homestand Over, Jets Get Job Done.

Claude Noel. His team "played with the will to win."

“I thought the game had tremendous pace,” said Noel. “I like the fact we didn’t get demoralized after giving up a goal with 35 seconds left in the second period and our guys played with a lot of will. They did a good job of leaving everything on the ice. They played with a lot of passion. And if we keep playing with that type of will and passion, we’ll be OK.

“It was a fast-paced game and both teams played with a lot of will. We didn’t do anything special against (Ryan) Miller. We just tried to get pucks to the net. I thought both goalies were good.”

Now comes the final 15 games with nine on the road.

“We have to take this confidence level and take the will that we played with at home and do the job on the road,” Noel said. ” You have to feel pretty good about where our team’s at and if we play with the same passion and energy — we don’t have the fans with us, but we know they’ll be cheering us from here — we’ve got a chance. It’s fun when you win. Winning’s more fun than losing.”

Indeed.

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It’s Sure Hard to Turn the Trade Deadline Snorefest Into a TV Show

Posted on February 27, 2012 by Scott Taylor| Leave a comment
Rick+Nash+Nashville+Predators+v+Columbus+Blue+DcGDqytwe 9l 235x300 Its Sure Hard to Turn the Trade Deadline Snorefest Into a TV Show

Rick Nash Stays in Columbus

WINNIPEG – The Trade Deadline has passed. Now it’s time to pay one final visit to our 30 National Hockey League franchises.

We got most of the deals right, or at least, close to right, although we did not believe the New Jersey Devils would be involved as much as they were, we firmly believed the Columbus Blue Jackets would try to move Rick Nash and we figured the Toronto Maple Leafs would do a lot more to try and acquire the players necessary to get themselves into the playoffs.

None of that happened and that’s why I must admit I felt sympathy for the poor hair-spray heads that spent the day on television trying to make something out of nothing.

And Trade Deadline Day was indeed, about absolutely nothing. In total, there were 15 trades involving 30 players and 11 draft picks but only a handful might be termed “major” (and I use that term lightly) trades:

1. The Vancouver Canucks sent a couple of 2012 draft picks to the Columbus Blue Jackets in exchange for forward Sami Pahlsson.

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Andrei Kostitsyn off to Nashville

2. The Montreal Canadiens sent forward Andrei Kostitsyn to Nashville in exchange for a couple of draft picks in 2013.

3. The Edmonton Oilers sent defenseman Tom Gilbert to Minnesota in exchange for defenseman Nick Schultz.

5. The Boston Bruins acquired forward Brian Rolston and defenseman Mike Mottau from the New York Islanders in exchange for a couple of prospects.

6. The Nashville Predators acquired Paul Gaustad and a fourth-round draft pick from the Buffalo Sabres in exchange for a first round pock in 2012.

Making an eight-hour TV show out of that has to be painful.

Here’s one final look at the winners and losers on Trade Deadline Day in the NHL:

Anaheim Ducks: GM Bob Murray said he would trade his top players, but as his team played better (they just went 5-1-2 on an eight-game road trip and are 7-1-2 in their last 10 to get back in the playoff hunt), it appeared as if his threats were made to scare the beejeezus out of a group of guys who saw themselves in Winnipeg or Edmonton and didn’t like the thought. The Ducks did nothing of significance and as a result, they were WINNERS.

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Brian Rolston clears waivers and is then dealt to the Bruins

Boston Bruins: Despite the fact Peter Chiarelli didn’t believe there would be much available, he did a marvelous job. He acquired veteran defensemen Mike Mottau (New Jersey) and Greg Zanon (Minnesota) and veteran forward Brian Rolston (New Jersey) and added grit, playmaking ability and experience to an already solid lineup. The Bruins were already a good hockey team. With what they did on deadline day, they were definitely WINNERS.

Buffalo Sabres: The disappointing Sabres dumped Paul Gaustad and got a first round pick from Nashville in 2012. They also picked up forward Cody Hodgson and defenseman Alexander Sulzer from Vancouver in exchange for forward Zack Kassian and defenseman Marc-Andre Gragnani. Hodgson and Sulzer will make the Sabres better moving forward. In all, the Sabres were WINNERS.

Calgary Flames: As expected, the Flames did nothing. They believe they have the people who can get them into the playoffs and there was no reason to give up too much. A WASH.

Carolina Hurricanes: Hurricanes GM Jim Rutherford wanted to do something but couldn’t pull the trigger. The Canes still have too many veterans with the wrong attitude. LOSERS.

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Hawks get Johnny Oduya from the Jets

Chicago Blackhawks: The Hawks went after a defenseman and got exactly what they wanted. Former Blackhawks assistant GM Kevin Cheveldayoff sent his former boss, Stan Bowman, Johnny Oduya for a second-round and third-round pick in 2013. The Blackhawks got what they were after – a fast defenseman with the ability to move the puck. WINNERS.

Colorado Avalanche: The Avalanche acquired Steve Downie from Tampa in exchange for Kyle Quincey, but they are pleased with their maturing team and figure they still have a shot at the post-season. A WASH.

Columbus Blue Jackets: The worst team in the NHL traded away Jeff Carter and Antoine Vermette, but it didn’t trade away Rick Nash. The question is, did they do enough to get significantly better? And make no mistake, this team had to get significantly better. Well, there is no question defenseman Jack Johnson will help them, a first round pick in 2013 will eventually help them, two middle of the pack draft picks in 2012 won’t hurt them. A WASH today, but could be a WINNER after 2013.

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Nicklas Grossman sent to Flyers

Dallas Stars: The Stars sent Nicklas Grossman to Philly this past week for a second-round pick in 2012 and a third-round pick in 2013 and acquired journeyman Eric Nystrom from Minnesota for futures. WINNERS.

Detroit Red Wings: GM Ken Holland acquired Kyle Quincey for a first round draft pick (probably 29th or 30th overall). Quincey scored in his first game with Detroit. Holland also dumped defenseman Mike Commodore for a seventh-round pick. A WASH.

Edmonton Oilers: The Oilers dealt Tom Gilbert, who they weren’t happy with, to get Nick Schultz and they’re happy with the deal. A WASH.

Florida Panthers: The Panthers acquired Wojtek Wolski from the Rangers on Saturday for defenseman Mike Vernace and a third-round pick in 2013 and Jerred Smithson from the Predators on Friday for a draft pick. WINNERS.

Los Angeles Kings: The Kings couldn’t get rid of LW Dustin Penner, but they didn’t expect anyone would want him. The Kings did get Jeff Carter, but gave up D Jack Johnson and a first-round pick to get him. LOSERS.

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Wild get Tom Gilbert

Minnesota Wild: The Wild got rid of F Eric Nystrom, D Marek Zidlicky, D Greg Zanon and D Nick Schultz, but acquired D Tom Gilbert, D Steve Kampfer, D Kurtis Foster, F Nick Palmieri, F Stephane Veilleux, a second-round pick in 2012 and a third-round pick in 2013. They didn’t get worse and might have improved. WINNERS

Montreal Canadiens: The Habs traded away Hal Gill, Andrei Kostitsyn and a fifth-round pick and got a second-round pick in 2013, a fifth-round pick in 2013, a second-round pick in 2012, Blake Geoffrion, Robert Slaney. The struggling Canadiens needed to do a lot more than they did at the deadline and have obviously written off 2011-12. Fact is, they didn’t get better. They couldn’t get worse. LOSERS.

Nashville Predators: The Predators acquired Hall Gill and Andrei Kostitsyn and they are a better team heading down the stretch. GM David Poile was happy to wait until the draft to either make a deal with all-star defenseman and soon-to-be unrestricted free agent Ryan Suter, or trade him. WINNERS.

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The Devils get Marek Zidlicky

New Jersey Devils: GM Lou Lamoriello did a lot more than we expected and it all helped make his team better and younger. He acquired Marek Zidlicky from Minnesota and sent Kurtis Foster, Nick Palmieri, Stephane Veilleux and two draft picks to get Zidlicky from Minnesota. The Devils got better. WINNERS.

New York Islanders: The Islanders needed to get better and they did nothing to improve. However, they did send Rolston and Mottau to Boston for prospects so they might get better in 2014. A WASH.

New York Rangers: GM Glen Sather didn’t do much, but he did get big D John Scott from Chicago for a draft pick so he didn’t hurt himself. When you’re in first place and playing well, there is no sense doing anything stupid. WINNERS.

Ottawa Senators: Sens GM Bryan Murray has said he doubted he’d do anything at the deadline and that was smart. Why significantly change a team that has responded well to rookie head coach Paul MacLean? He did pick up prospect goalie Ben Bishop for a second round pick in 2013 and that can’t hurt. WINNERS.

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The Flyers acquired Pavel Kubina

Philadelphia Flyers: The Flyers didn’t add any depth up front, but they did acquire defensemen Pavel Kubina and Nicklas Grossman this past week in hopes they can replace the injured Chris Pronger. Both were good moves. WINNERS.

Phoenix Coyotes: The league figures this team can make the playoffs with what it already possesses. Just like Calgary, Phoenix’s trade deadline day was A WASH.

Pittsburgh Penguins: The Penguins are a very good team that knows it can’t replace Sidney Crosby. Even if Crosby doesn’t come back, it was always unlikely the Pens would be involved in anything significant on Deadline Day. The fact they did nothing stupid makes them WINNERS.

San Jose Sharks: The Sharks got Dominic Moore from Tampa so they got the “third-line energy guy” they were after. They picked up F Daniel Winnik and F T.J., Gagliardi and a seventh-round pick from Colorado for three prospects. WINNERS.

St. Louis Blues: The Blues liked their team and got a second-round pick for prospect goalie Ben Bishop. A WASH.

Tampa Bay Lightning: The Lightning were prepared to deal. They sent Dominic Moore to San Jose, Steve Downie to Colorado and Pavel Kubina to Philly. They also picked up three prospects and a first-round pick in 2012 (probably 29th or 30th from Detroit). A WASH for now, but maybe WINNERS after the season.

Toronto Maple Leafs: The Leafs did nothing of significance to a team that needed help. They messed around with a couple of prospects. They did not get better, probably because they had nothing to trade. They are 2-7-1 in their last 10, have fallen out of the playoffs and are heading toward the bottom of the Eastern Conference. LOSERS.

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Former Manitoba Moose Cody Hodgson is out of Vancouver and off to Buffalo

Vancouver Canucks: The Canucks acquired D Sami Pahlsson and D Marc-Andre Gragnani and a couple of prospects. They gave up Cody Hodgson, a couple of prospects and a middle of the pack draft pick. WINNERS.

Washington Capitals: The Caps did nothing to get better and they needed to get better. LOSERS.

Winnipeg Jets: The Jets are in the playoff hunt and they like their mix. However, they traded over-priced and soon-to-be-unrestricted-free-agent D Johnny Oduya for a second and third-round draft pick in 2013 and did nothing to upset the chemistry that has them fighting for first in the Southeast Division. WINNERS.

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Win or Lose, the Winnipeg Jets Always Make it Exciting

Posted on February 25, 2012 by Scott Taylor| Leave a comment
139843766 slide 300x230 Win or Lose, the Winnipeg Jets Always Make it Exciting

Chris Mason stops T.J. Oshie

THE UPDATE:

WINNIPEG — You have to hand it to the Winnipeg Jets. They find every possible way they can to make it exciting.

Saturday afternoon at MTS Centre, the Jets outshot the St. Louis Blues 41-16 and lost 3-2 in a shootout. Go figure.

Still, it was a thriller. There wasn’t a moment in the game in which a Jets fan didn’t think that something significant might happen. It was just fun to be in the rink.

The Jets have now gone 3-0-2 in the first five games of an eight-game homestand and every game has been tremendous to watch: Winnipeg 4 Boston 2, Winnipeg 5 Colorado 1, Philadelphia 5 Winnipeg 4 (OT), Winnipeg 4 Tampa 3, St. Louis 3 Winnipeg 2 (SO).

Now, granted, a lot of the excitement at MTS Centre has to do with the fact the fans are seldom quiet or sitting down. Thy really have a right to call themselves the loudest fans in the game. Still, a Jets team that scores one night and doesn’t score the next and yet allows the opposition to mirror what they do (in every game except the 5-1 win over Colorado), makes every game the Jets play at the downtown rink a thriller.

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Blake Wheeler -- the best player on the ice.

“I thought today was one of those days where the shot chart was pretty indicative of the way the game was going,” said Blake Wheeler, who scored two goals and was the Jets best player. ” You have to take your hat off to their goalie. He was pretty good today. But that’s the way we have to play down the stretch if we want to win hockey teams. I think everyone feels it was a pretty good effort. We feel we should have one the game.

“We’re disappointed because it was an opportunity for us to get two points, but if we continue to play with that kind of resolve and that kind of effort, we’ll win a lot of games.”

That pretty much summed it up. The Jets were the best team on the ice, but Jarolsav Halak was both lucky and good and the Blues escaped with a victory that left the Jets with a record of 30-26-8 this season.

Winnipeg, the second-place team in the Southeast Division, now has 68 points, the same as first-place Florida, who beat Carolina 3-2 in a shootout on Saturday night. The Panthers, however, have four games in hand. The Jets are now eighth in the East, a point ahead of ninth-place Washington, a team that has two games in hand.

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The Blues Jaroslav Halak Stole One.

Still, the Jets have done exactly what they needed to do in this eight-game homestand. They have yet to play a game without getting a point. With eight of a possible 10 points in the homestand (10 of a possible 12 in their last six games), the Jets have made the noise they needed to make (I said they need at least 13 of 16 to stay in the hunt). They can’t do anything about the schedule and all those games in hand make it difficult down the stretch, but at least they have a chance.

And in the NHL, where only eight teams in each conference make the playoffs (the last playoff team will likely need 90-92 points in the East), all any team can ask for with 18 games left is a chance.

“We needed to get two points but we didn’t, but there was a lot of good things we can take out of this game,” said head coach Claude Noel. “It was a well-played game and a lot of guys brought their A games today. We would have liked to have had two points, but we aren’t disappointed with getting one.”

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The Lightning Might Be The Class of the NHL

Posted on February 23, 2012 by Scott Taylor| Leave a comment
wayne fleming The Lightning Might Be The Class of the NHL

Wayne Fleming fighting for his life.

Life isn’t easy these days for our old friend Wayne Fleming.

In fact, the Tampa Bay Lightning assistant coach who was once the head coach of the University of Manitoba Bisons back in the day, is currently engaged in the toughest battle of his life.

Fleming, 61, has a brain tumor and is recovering in Calgary. He is not with the team, but is still listed as one of the team’s assistant coaches on the official roster that is distributed every night at all Lightning games. In other words, the Tampa Bay Lightning have not written off Wayne Fleming. He might not be on the bench, but he has not been forgotten.

One of Fleming’s closest friends is his financial advisor George Sigurdson. There are nights when Sigurdson cheers loudly for the Lightning. Even when they play against the Winnipeg Jets, a team that is owned by George’s dear friend Mark Chipman, Sigurdson will not feel terrible if Tampa Bay wins.

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Steve Yzerman - a class act.

That’s because Sigurdson knows that the Tampa organization, headed up by owner Jeff Vinik and general manager Steve Yzerman, just might be one of the classiest organizations in all of sport.

The Lightning organization has never suggested, even hinted, to Wayne and his wife Carolyn, that his paycheques will be replaced by disability insurance. Every pay day, Fleming’s cheque is deposited in the bank. In the meantime, the Lightning players bought him a special electric chair to help with his rehabilitation.

The Lightning could probably move Fleming off the books and have the insurance company send their cancer-battling assistant coach a cheque every month (and no one would criticize them for it), but that’s not the way the Lightning do things.

The club that played in Winnipeg last night is a reflection of its owner and GM. It’s a class act.

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In a Race Like This, the Jets Just Can’t Afford to Lose.

Posted on February 11, 2012 by Scott Taylor| Leave a comment
138752987 slide 300x222 In a Race Like This, the Jets Just Cant Afford to Lose.

The Jets best player, Blake Wheeler.

Saturday afternoon, in a game that would open Hockey Day in Canada, the Winnipeg Jets tried something new and different: Scoring goals.

Trouble with that strategy for a team that has spent more than a month playing great defensive hockey, is that if they start taking chances on a defense, the other team will score a few goals itself. Especially if that “other team” happens to be the Pittsburgh Penguins.

Saturday the Jets scored five times, their highest single-game goal output since Dec. 17, when they beat the Anaheim Ducks 5-3 at MTS Centre. This time, however, they were beaten 8-5 by the hometown Penguins as the NHL’s MVP this season, Evgeni Malkin, had a goal and four assists.

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Evgeni Malkin scores.

The loss was devastating for the Jets. They went into the game just three points behind the first-place Florida Panthers in the Southeast Division and with Florida’s 3-1 win at New Jersey, the Winnipegs came away five points back. Later in the day they got a break when Montreal blitzed the Toronto Maple Leafs 5-0 so the Jets remained only four points out of eighth in the East, but now the Habs have won four straight and they are only two points behind Winnipeg.

Winnipeg has been quite fortunate in recent weeks. Despite the fact the Jets are a wonky 4-5-1 in their last 10, they are still in the middle of the playoff hunt. A few wins at home at the end of this month and the Jets could catapult themselves back above “the eighth-place line” that head coach Claude Noel often talks about.

138755375 slide 300x222 In a Race Like This, the Jets Just Cant Afford to Lose.

The Jets had no answer for Malkin and the Pens.

It was clear on Saturday, however, that while the Jets remain one of the hardest-working teams in the NHL, they simply do not have the finish and skill to stay with the elite teams in the league. That doesn’t mean they don’t deserve to be a playoff team or don’t have the heart to play above their skill-level. It simply means that the Jets are a team with some great second and third line forwards, but very few first-liners. And when they get into a game in which the forwards and the defensemen “serve up pizzas” as Noel likes to say, they can get kicked. And it gets even more difficult for the Jets when they face an offensive powerhouse like the Penguins.

Saturday’s game was a far cry from Thursday night’s thrilling win in Washington. With one great comeback, the Jets picked up a huge two points from an inter-divisional rival and overcame a 2-0 deficit in the final 2:15 of the third period to get it done.

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Kris Letang beats Ondrej Pavelec

With a third-straight win on Saturday, the Jets could have been nipping at Toronto’s heels by Sunday morning, but as we saw on Saturday afternoon, there are still a number of teams in the NHL for which the Jets have no answer — and not all of them are great teams. Pittsburgh certainly could be a great team and there is no doubt that Detroit, San Jose, Boston and the Rangers are playoff bound, but the Jets have also had trouble with Florida, Montreal and New Jersey and that trio is hardly among the NHL’s juggernauts.

The trade deadline is coming in about two weeks and the Jets have three things going for them: (1) they have about $11 million in cap room; (2) they have prospects and veterans to trade and (3) they are making money hand-over-fist. If general manager Kevin Cheveldayoff wants to take a run at the playoffs this spring, he might  decide to alter his plans of “patience and development” and chase down a couple of top-line goal scorers — even if they just happen to be rent-a-players.

That’s not something I would expect him to do, but at least he has both the need and the wherewithal to go in that direction.

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Will Cheveldayoff make a deal?

Saturday should have sent the GM one simple message: he has a gutsy, hard-working team, on most nights, but even that won’t make up for a lack of top-line talent against teams that not only have that top-line talent, but also the heart and the will to go with it. The Jets give it their best most every night, but against better teams, the Jets best just isn’t good enough.

At 26-25-6 this season, the Jets are just OK. Not great, not bad, but probably better than a lot of insiders expected. However, they aren’t that far away from being a playoff team and they do have the money and the assets required to make a deal or three that would improve their standing in today’s NHL.

Whether or not they decide to go in that direction remains to be seen.

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Three Straight Games With a Single Goal in Regulation: Jets Need to Start Scoring Soon.

Posted on February 5, 2012 by Scott Taylor| Leave a comment
Ondrej Pavelec 4 259x300 Three Straight Games With a Single Goal in Regulation: Jets Need to Start Scoring Soon.

Ondrej Pavelec has been very good.

TAMPA — It might sound like a broken record, but the Winnipeg Jets need to start scoring some goals. Even with Dustin Byfuglien and Alexander Burmistrov back in the lineup, the Jets have continued to find goal scoring a difficult task. And heading into Montreal today, they might need to get their heads around this current scoring slump.

This past week the Jets played three road games. They beat Philadelphia 2-1 in a shootout, the beat Tampa 2-1 in overtime and they lost to Florida 2-1. In three games, the Jets scored three goals in regulation time. Total. If you were an NHL goalie, playing for the Winnipeg Jets and your goals against average was 2.00, you’d have lost three straight games.

Fortunately, Ondrej Pavelec was better than that and Winnipeg survived with a record of 2-1-0 (sadly, Chris Mason gave up two and didn’t survive it). However, despite the fact that Winnipeg’s defensive game has been terrific and the Jets have certainly had some chances to score, this team and its collective hands of stone have simply scored enough goals to win enough games to puncture that 8th-place playoff line. After all, in Sunrise on Friday night, the Jets had a chance to cut Florida’s lead in the Southeast Division to one point, but they lost 2-1 and now they find themselves five points back. That loss was a heartbreaker.

This weekend, some of the Jets suggested to a local newspaper that all the team needs to do is go to the net and “score some greasy goals.” Trouble is, they go to the net. Hard. They simply don’t have players with enough goal-scoring ability.

wheeler1 300x195 Three Straight Games With a Single Goal in Regulation: Jets Need to Start Scoring Soon.

Blake Wheeler: Nobody Goes to the Net Harder.

Nobody in the NHL goes to the net harder than Blake Wheeler, who has just been a monster up front this season, and yet he has 10 goals and 25 assists ad is 77th in scoring in the NHL. He’s the Jets leading scorer. That’s not good enough. The team’s leading goal-scorer, the concussed Evander Kane, has 18 goals and is tied for 36thin goal-scoring.

However, barring a sudden scoring streak (while a couple five-goal games would help, it might not matter), the fact remains that if the Jets can keep their collective heads about them for the next week, the team’s crazy schedule might be enough to get them into the playoffs.

And frankly, “crazy” is the only way to describe what the National Hockey League’s schedule makers did to the Jets this season. This is a schedule that has not done the team any favors. They played seven of 11 games on the road in October, eight of 13 games on the road in November, then 12 of 14 at home in December, then nine of 13 on the road in January.

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Evander Kane: Jets Need Him Back.

That’s goofy. Based on the fact the Jets are 15-8-2 at home this season and 9-15-4 on the road, a more consistent schedule might have helped them. True, it might not have made any difference at all, but one suspects that when your schedule is consistent, there is a better chance you will play a more consistent brand of hockey. As good as the Jets have been in front of their seventh-man this season — and especially as good as goalie Ondrej Pavelec has been in his own building — they have been quite mediocre on the road. Long road swings will do that to a team.

In December, the Jets played 12 of 14 games at home and went 10-3-1 to get as high as sixth in the East. Then along came January with nine of 13 on the road and the Jets went 4-8-1. They also scored a meager 21 goals in 13-plus games. It didn’t help that Winnipeg lost a pair of home games — 2-0 to San Jose on Jan. 12, and 2-1 to New Jersey on Jan. 14 — this month, but head coach Claude Noel isn’t quite so worried about a small glitch at the MTS Centre. He has, however, made it clear: “We have to find a way to start winning on the road.”

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Dusrin Byfuglien: His Return Hasn't Changed the Jets Offensive Fortunes

For the next week, it doesn’t get a whole lot easier for the Jets. After playing in Montreal Sunday, they come home on Tuesday night to play the Leafs and then go back out onto the road meet Washington on Thursday and Pittsburgh on Saturday. Then, after playing the Islanders at home on the 14th, they go to Minnesota on the 16th. That’s four out of the next six on the road.

It’s a tough stretch, but if they can hover around .500 hockey through those road games, they’ll get a real treat in late February and early March: They play eight consecutive games at home from Feb. 17 to March 5.

600px Winnipeg Jets Logo 2011.svg 2 300x300 Three Straight Games With a Single Goal in Regulation: Jets Need to Start Scoring Soon.As of Sunday, the Jets find themselves 24-23-6, still 10th in the East. However, despite being 10th, they are only five points behind ninth-place Toronto and third-place, Southeast-leading Florida. They are not out of the playoff hunt by any stretch.

If they can stay within striking distance of the Leafs and Panthers over the next week, they will get a marvelous chance to make some noise at the end of February. In fact, if they can coax three wins out of the next six, Winnipeg’s Seventh Man might just have a say in who makes the playoffs in the East.

Of course, they’d better find a way to score some goals. No matter how good your checking lines and goaltenders are, you are going to lose more 2-1 games than you win. Even in the low-scoring NHL.

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