Rss

It was arguably the most even game of the pre-season thus far, but the Jets managed to come out on top as they beat the Flames 4-1. Both teams had plenty of chances and Brossoit stood tall as the Jets came away with their second pre-season victory. For the full game recap, click here.

Per usual, there are many things that we can learn from the pre-season. Let’s check out some of the takeaways from the midway point in training camp.

1) Heinola is the real deal.

If you watched the game, there wasn’t any doubt who the best defensemen was for Winnipeg. Heinola was phenomenal in all situations as he routinely made excellent breakouts, smart pinches, and solid defensive plays.

Heinola’s poise is really showcasing itself as he looks incredibly calm with the puck on his stick. This was especially evident on the powerplay as Heinola was quarterbacking the top unit. He made great swing passes from Scheifele to Wheeler and was able to get involved in the play.

2) Logan Stanley is just not ready.

Stanley is still just not ready for the NHL. He has some decent moments, but as a whole he makes far too many mistakes to be considered for the NHL roster. In this game specifically, he had a few terrible pinches along the boards which directly led to scoring chances by Calgary. A few of them were bad decisions in the offensive end, while there were a few in the neutral zone as well. Overall, I think we have seen enough to know that Stanley isn’t a real candidate to make the NHL this year.

3) Ehlers is ready for top line duty.

We may have gotten a preview of the top line for Winnipeg to start the season. Ehlers was playing with Scheifele and Wheeler and they had a strong game as a group. Both Wheeler and Ehlers picked up goals, although both of them were gifts into wide open nets. Ehlers specifically looked really good in this one including a spectacular move to work the puck from behind the net to the front. With these silky moves, there’s no doubt that Ehlers is ready to roll into the regular season.

Tidbits

  • The Jets utilized a fairly clean breakout from behind their own net. It went from the defensmen behind the net to the defensemen waiting in the corner. From there, they hit the opposite side winger who was streaking through the middle. The Jets used this multiple times and generated some really nice speed through neutral ice. It’s a solid option for the Jets, especially with the amount of speedy wingers they have at their disposal.
  • The Jets scored all of their goals (minus the empty net) from point shots. It seems that the team is trying to get more pucks towards the net from the point which is likely a new coaching point heading into this season. It’s been working so far as the Jets got bodies to the net and were able to get their stick on a few pucks.

  • Laurent Brossoit was thoroughly tested all game. He made some really strong saves and looked excellent in the crease. The one that beat him came from a weird bounce in front of the net while shorthanded. Other than that, Brossoit was one of the best players for the team.
  • Wheeler can’t quite find the seam on the powerplay. While this isn’t much of an issue yet, it just proves that these guys aren’t firing on all cylinders so far. To be fair, Scheifele is playing in Laine’s position so the personnel is slightly different. If only Laine would sign a new deal and get into a game for some practice…
  • The bottom six in this game was largely unnoticeable. They did contribute a goal in the third period, but they mostly struggled to get offensive zone time. It’s not a big worry though as the entire bottom six from last night is likely Moose bound this week.