Jets go down fighting

A lack of pushback this was not.

An inability to find the structure that made them the best defensive team during the regular season proved to be the Winnipeg Jets’ downfall as they were bounced from the Stanley Cup playoffs in five games by the high-flying Colorado Avalanche after a 6-3 loss Tuesday night at Canada Life Centre.

There will be plenty of time to dissect what comes next for the Jets, who face another long off-season of questions after they failed to advance past the opening round.

For the time being, the Jets are left to lament another missed opportunity.

“It doesn’t feel like there is any right now but I mean, I’m proud of the way the guys brought their game today,” said Jets defenceman Josh Morrissey. “That’s a good hockey team over there. They’re playing really well right now and but I don’t think they saw our best really until today and I still think we have a better game to get to.”

After finishing tied for fourth overall in the NHL with a record of 52-24-6 while giving up only 199 goals to win the William M. Jennings Trophy, the Jets didn’t manage the puck well enough and never could solve the four-man attack often employed by their opponent.

The Jets allowed too many odd-man rushes, didn’t defend the blue paint in front of the net well enough and were not nearly sharp enough when it came to coverage in the defensive zone.

Couple that with taking too many undisciplined penalties and not generating enough offensively and the Jets were no match for an Avalanche team that looked more like the 2022 Stanley Cup champions than an outfit that was swept in the three-game season series with the Jets and was outscored 17-4 in the process.

On the offensive side of things, the Jets managed only eight goals over the final four games.

“There’s no moral victories in this league,” said Jets captain Adam Lowry. “I think we got back to the foundation of being a real solid defensive team and we thought we were going to give ourselves a great chance with that identity to go on a long run. Unfortunately we couldn’t play that game consistently enough. It’s not for a lack of trying or a lack of effort. I think everyone in this room shows up and they put their best foot forward. The Avs did a really good job forcing us to try and play their game. We weren’t able to kind of impose our will and impose our style.”

The Avalanche advance to face the winner of the series between the Dallas Stars and Vegas Golden Knights, which is currently tied 2-2 going into Game 5 on Wednesday.

Let’s take a closer look at what transpired.

1. The ugly numbers

The Jets became the first team in NHL history to allow at least five goals in each of the first five games of a Stanley Cup playoff series.

That is so far out of character that it’s simply hard to explain.

Of course, the blazing speed of the Avalanche played a role in the Jets failing to find the lockdown style that was their bread and butter.

A perfect example was how the Jets allowed the equalizer in the first period.

After a high-speed zone entry by Nathan MacKinnon, he pushed the Jets back onto their heels and after he fed the puck over to Devon Toews, the Jets lost Valeri Nichushkin in coverage and he buried a one-timer for his seventh goal of the series — which led all players.

Speaking of numbers that shouldn’t sit well, the Jets are now 0-6 when facing elimination since the Game 7 win in the second round of the 2018 playoff series with the Nashville Predators.

2. The masked men

There is little doubt that Jets goalie Connor Hellebuyck didn’t get enough support from his teammates in this series, but he never quite found the form that made him a Vezina Trophy finalist for the fourth time in his career.

Hellebuyck was serenaded with “Hel-ly” chants prior to the anthem and during the game and while he didn’t let in any soft goals, he was the second-best goalie in this series, allowing 24 goals in five games.

“I’m not going to put any blame on Helly, that’s for sure,” said Jets defenceman Morrissey, who scored a power play goal and finished the series with three goals.

“You know, we wouldn’t be where we’re at right now if it weren’t for him. The way he’s played all year, you know, go through a lot of those goals and tell me if he could have stopped them. I certainly don’t put any onus on him or any individual player on our team. We win as a team, we lose as a team and we all need to look internally this summer and find ways that we can get better.”

At the other end of the ice, Alexandar Georgiev had his fourth consecutive solid outing to eliminate any fears Avalanche fans may have felt after he allowed seven goals on 23 shots on goal in Game 1.

Georgiev allowed only eight goals during the final four games.

3. The own goals

In a game that featured plenty of quality chances at both ends, it was odd to see a pair of own goals — with one for each team.

The Jets actually opened the scoring on a goal from Kyle Connor that Avalanche defenceman Josh Manson banked in off the shin pad of teammate Artturi Lehkonen as he attempted to clear the puck out of the crease.

Lehkonen was credited with the go-ahead goal for the Avalanche late in the second period when his back-door pass went into the Jets’ net off the stick of Jets defenceman Neal Pionk.

Pionk had a tough series for the Jets as he was also stripped of the puck before Yakov Trenin scored to put the Avalanche up 2-1 at 5:42 of the second period.

4. Trade deadline acquisitions

Going into the series, this was supposed to be another area where the Jets held an edge. They brought in two-thirds of a new second line, adding centre Sean Monahan from the Montreal Canadiens and right-winger Tyler Toffoli from the New Jersey Devils.

Monahan was a fantastic fit during the regular season, providing a boost in virtually all areas of the game, from faceoffs to special teams.

His offensive production sputtered as Monahan returned to the Stanley Cup playoffs for the first time since 2019-20, when his Calgary Flames faced the Jets.

After generating 13 goals and 24 points in 34 games with the Jets, Monahan was limited to two assists in five games in this series.

Stats don’t always tell the story, and Monahan still found a way to contribute in the faceoff circle, though the lack of points proved costly.

Things were tougher for Toffoli, who started Tuesday’s game on the fourth line and was demoted in a similar fashion to Kevin Hayes in 2019 — and for a similar reason.

The decision to bring in a proven scorer with a championship pedigree was a sound one, but like Hayes, the fit didn’t end up being as seamless as it was expected.

Toffoli had seven goals and 11 points in 18 games during the regular season, but he never truly found his peak form.

On Tuesday, Toffoli took a drop pass from Nikolaj Ehlers early in the third period and tied the game 3-3 after he was bumped back into the top six.

That gave him two goals and two points in five games in the series.

Defenceman Colin Miller, who was also acquired from the Devils, was limited to five games during the regular season and made his Jets playoff debut on Tuesday.

5. Extra, extra

Facing elimination, Bowness made three lineup changes, inserting centre David Gustafsson up front for Vladislav Namestnikov (fractured cheekbone), forward Cole Perfetti for Axel Jonsson-Fjallby and Miller for Logan Stanley on defence.

Perfetti was making his Stanley Cup playoff debut and started the game on the second line with Sean Monahan and Connor.

He had a solid outing, getting involved physically while finishing with three shots on goal, making several smart plays and showing few signs of nerves for a young player that hadn’t been in game action since the regular-season finale.

Miller was used on the Jets’ third pairing with Nate Schmidt and ended up with the shots on goal and five hits in just under 15 minutes of ice time, drawing an assist on the Toffoli marker.

ken.wiebe@freepress.mb.ca

X: @WiebesWorld

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Ken Wiebe
Sports reporter

Raised in the booming metropolis of Altona, Man., Ken Wiebe grew up wanting to play in the NHL, but after realizing his hands were more adept at typing than scoring, he shifted his attention to cover his favourite sport as a writer.

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