All of these people will be trying to make Fleury look like this. (Photo Credit: SinBin.vegas Photographer Brandon Andreasen)
The Golden Knights opponent in the Western Conference Finals is the Winnipeg Jets. The Jets are somewhat of an anomaly in the NHL as they are a nearly incredible mix of size and speed that has given opposing teams fits all year.
You’ve probably heard the names of their stars like Patrik Laine, Mark Scheifele, and Dustin Byfuglien, but with a lot of help (he wrote the whole thing) from Art Middleton of JetsNation.ca, we’re here to give you a glimpse of what to expect from every Winnipeg Jet.
Forwards
Mark Scheifele – A bonafide top 10 NHL center that is seemingly tireless on the ice which is good because he excels in all situations, 5-on-5 ,as well as both special teams.
Blake Wheeler – Co-led the NHL in assists which speaks to his ability as an elite playmaker. Finalist for the Messier Leadership Award which speaks to his ability as an elite NHL captain.
Kyle Connor – Led all rookies in goal scoring this season and yet got almost no love for it because he happened to be a good enough rookie to play on the top line with Scheifele and Wheeler.
Paul Stastny – Since the trade to Winnipeg he had four goals, 13 points in 19 regular season games and six goals, 14 points in 12 playoff games. Also brought a wealth of experience. Best. Trade. Ever. (So far)
Patrik Laine – Yes he snipes like few others can, but his passing skill is also second to none and is always constantly looking to make himself better in other areas of the game.
Nik Ehlers – It’s one thing to be a fast skater, Ehlers is one of the fastest with a puck on his stick while weaving through defenders but sometimes guilty trying to do too much on his own.
Matthieu Perreault – You can play him with Little and Laine or you can play him with Hendricks and Copp, it doesn’t matter as he will drive his line to positive results almost every time.
Bryan Little – Had an off-year offensively, but still a savvy veteran forward who doesn’t do any one thing spectacularly, but does a lot of things well.
Joel Armia – Could stickhandle in a phone booth (kids, ask your parents what a phone booth is) but his footwork and on-ice decision making holds him back.
Brandon Tanev – Plays like an unguided missile. Fast, lacking hands but certainly not lacking effort ever. Hard on the forecheck.
Adam Lowry – Has developed into the Jets best shut-down defensive center. Injuries have hindered his game a bit, but advanced numbers suggested he was having a Selke-like year.
Andrew Copp – Streaky player that when on is a great bottom six depth forward who can drive play and win puck battles, but when slumping or not playing well is a bit of a liability on the ice.
Matt Hendricks – The “grit and heart” guy most Jets fans hope we don’t see on the ice at all. By all accounts is a great locker room leader the guys love, but too slow for today’s game.
Defensemen
Jacob Trouba – Don’t let his stats fool you, he’s easily Winnipeg’s best all-around defenseman. Smooth, quick skater who rarely makes a bad decision on the ice and can be surprisingly physical when needed.
Josh Morrissey – The prototype modern defenseman. Quick puck mover with an underrated physical edge and mean streak with a strong set of offensive skills.
Tobias Enstrom – Pretty sure he’s being held together by duct tape and bubble gum. Smart, heads-up defenseman who will play it safe and limit risks which does hurt his offensive numbers.
Dustin Byfuglien – Beast of a man. For years, loved to play a “rover” hybrid position between offense and defense which would put him out of position. He still does that, but he’s far smarter about it now.
Ben Chiarot -Steady enough defenseman with decent speed and a great, hard shot, but his decision making with the puck is often too slow and he will miss the odd coverage assignment.
Tyler Myers – An answer to the question “what would a giraffe playing hockey look like?” Crafty on offense, shoots the puck well, but always an adventure defending in his own end of the ice.
Goalies
Connor Hellebuyck – He’s possibly an elven magician king who has the superpower of putting up impenetrable force fields, we’ll let you know if we ever verify that.
Steve Mason – Has set the record for hardest luck season by a goalie ever with injuries. Was supposed to be the Jets insurance in case Hellebuyck didn’t come through, thankfully it was never needed.
**Huge stick tap to Art for writing all of these for us. Give him a follow and don’t troll him too hard if the series goes the way we are hoping it will.**
Jets Projected Lineup
Connor-Scheifele-Wheeler
Ehlers-Stastney-Laine
Perrault-Little-Armia
Copp-Lowry-Tanev
Morrissey-Trouba
Entrom-Byfuglien
Chiarot-Myers
Hellebuyck
Brian
Great job, Art. And good on you, Ken, for finding these other media gems in these series. This is super informative to get the details from one of their insiders.
Gonna be a GREAT series !! GO KNIGHTS GO
#CUPIN1
Mark
Nice write up Art.
As a guy who has watched the Sabres for 40 years, the Myers Piece is spot on.
Slr1982
Hey Mark…..are you from Buffalo? I am, have been a fan since 74-75. Have now lived in Vegas for 25 years. It’s great to have NHL hockey here now. Still a Sabres fan but…… Go Knights Go! For me it’s like 1A – 1B loved the Oct. 17th game.
Warren Shapiro
Well hockey fans you got your brief description of the other team lets make their stay brief and go to the next round and finally surprise everyone and take the “Holy Grail” the STANLEY CUP. Everyone and chant : “GO KNIGHTS GO” and of course
“shoot that puck and score the goal” As I close I say, “Good Luck Knights”
Vgk
Winnipeg is going to get the calls. The league needs a Canadian team in the finals.
William
Complete one sided calls all in favor of the jets. Knights should’ve just iced the puck over and over with the way this game has been called.
Ulf
No, you can’t really say that. Officiating in the playoffs has been weak for years and players and coaches should know by now how that’s done. Any other team who’s come this far gets it. Plus absolutely no egregious plays in this one.
I personally think the rules should be called consistently thoughout the year, it holds the NHL back otherwise
Rob
Had a few thoughts watching this game.
First, I thought that once the first 10 min (bloodbath) was over, we began to show flashes of who we are and what we can really do in this series. It wasn’t great, but it looked like we will be up for this challenge.
Second, I hate goaltender interference. The rule reads “If a play is questionable and was called in favor of Vegas on the ice, rule against Vegas.” So by definition, they keep getting it right, but I still hate it.
Finally, I wonder how much impact there was considering WPG just battled Nashville for 7 games and we just played the Sharks and dusted them in 6(shoulda been 5)?
This is the first series where I don’t see us as the hands down better team. Were our guys caught a bit off guard by just how fast and crisp and tough WPG was because we had been playing inferior competition for two rounds? Also, was WPG better primed for us since they just battled arguably one of the best teams in the league for 7 and won?
All that being said, I did feel the game seemed to slow down for our boys by the end of the 1st and it looked like we might get back in it and steal one.
Regardless, more hockey on Monday and Go Knights Go!!!
Garth
The Jets won the game in 10minutes of play……the really good news for us Jets fans …..they can play better…is it too early to talk brooms?
Slr1982
Yes, it is. This is a 7 game series, the Jets were at home coming off an emotional 7 game series. Also remember the Jets lost 2 of 3 from the Knights this year.