12°c Overcast
18°c Cloudy with sunny breaks
Winnipeg Free Press - PRINT EDITION
For 3-5-0 Jets, home is where the hard is
JOE BRYKSA / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS archives Jets coach Claude Noel says the team embraces tight situations.
Related Items
WITH the Winnipeg Jets, it used to be revel in the MTS Centre and dread the road.
In recent days, games elsewhere have brought the results. So do the Jets fear stepping back on home ice tonight, where they have lost four straight?
"I don't, no," Jets coach Claude Noel said Wednesday, speaking for his team on a well-earned day off that followed four wins in five away games. "I think our players' hearts are in the right place. We just need to play well and be patient. The only thing that you're always somewhat worried about is when you come home off a long road trip.
"We dealt with that demon all the time last year and I thought we handled it pretty well. To me, there's too much support here (to go wrong). Sometimes you might fear overtrying, but that's a little different."
Heading for tonight's contest versus the New Jersey Devils (7 p.m., TSNJets, TSN1290), Winnipeg is 6-4-1 on the road and just 3-5-0 at the MTS Centre.
"Our homestand had not been good before we left, so it's time to get that area repaired," Noel said. "But it's the same thing, when you plug one hole, another one opens up."
The Jets plugged holes very well on the road. And their 4-1 mark on the trip might even have been better but for a third-period meltdown in Philadelphia.
That defeat in Game 3 of the trip did not lead to anything worse, despite the fact the Jets had nothing but grief to show for their visits to New Jersey and New York's Madison Square Garden last season.
"It's easy to say this but maturity would be one of (the reasons)," Noel said. "The fact that we have a belief system that we're better than last year and we feel that... when you look at that Philadelphia game, we've been through quite a few of those games this year."
The Jets were aided by many pluses, including scoring first in each of the five road games, and some timely goals later on.
You should add leadership to that, Noel said Wednesday.
"One thing you can't deny, at least from my standpoint, is the leadership of our team," he said. "And a lot of that has to be pointed at our leadership group, led by Andrew Ladd.
"He brings the will to the game. He brings that quiet confidence and he's been a big producer as well. I know Evander (Kane) has been on a streak but Ladder's bringing that confidence that we can get it done and he leads by example."
That confidence is also helping the team fix a record that was sagging badly in one-goal decisions.
The Jets, ignoring empty-net goals, have played what have turned out to be one-goal games in 10 of their last 11 outings. By winning three of four of those on the trip after losing four of those in a row at home, their mark on the 11-game stretch is 5-5.
"It's a real test on your resolve," Noel said. "A lot of times it tests your character and confidence, (because) it becomes brittle.
"We seem to embrace (close games) right now. We're not afraid of it. You could have looked two weeks ago during a stretch of time, where you play like you're waiting for the wheels to fall off, where now we're looking forward to the game and knowing a quiet confidence makes us feel like this is under control."
Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition February 28, 2013 D3
More Latest News
- Back to Top
- Return to Latest News
More Latest News
(1 of 35 articles for today)
Province announces service for Elijah Harper
4:56 PM 0View Related
Poll
Most Popular Latest News
- Man charged, victims identified in double homicide
- Charleswood deaths being investigated as domestic incident
- Two women face rare charges of harbouring alleged murderer
- Aboriginal leader Elijah Harper dies
- One dead in Highway 10 collision
- Leaving a gang isn't easy — Sidney Letandre, now a paraplegic, knows it all too well
- Head-on collision kills pickup driver
- Manitoba's changing spiritual landscape
- Horrific crash kills minivan driver near Brandon
- 'It's a beautiful story': There's not always a tomorrow to say you're sorry or make things right
- Seattle man dribbling soccer ball to Brazil killed by car on Oregon Coast
- Aboriginal leader Elijah Harper dies
- News of city's $17-million winner leaks out on FB
- Woman killed in head-on crash in southwestern Manitoba
- Horrific crash kills minivan driver near Brandon
- Charleswood deaths being investigated as domestic incident
- Hundreds pitch in to dig out houses damaged, destroyed by Ochre Beach ice floe
- Crushing blow for amateur sport
- US woman credits 'mother's instincts' in chase of 4-year-old daughter's abductor
- Flood victim gets six years for shotgun threat, attack
- Seattle man dribbling soccer ball to Brazil killed by car on Oregon Coast
- Driver crashes into tree near golf course
- VIDEO: Left on the ice to rot
- Arrests made after raids on local head shops
- Aboriginal leader Elijah Harper dies
- News of city's $17-million winner leaks out on FB
- Passengers from diverted flight to leave Winnipeg Thursday night
- No threat from bag found at Winnipeg Square
- Susan Griffiths dies in Switzerland
- Woman killed in head-on crash in southwestern Manitoba
- Marsh Madness: Photographers Fred Greenslade and Joe Bryksa capture spring migration's grandeur at Delta Marsh
- Manitoba's changing spiritual landscape
- Man charged, victims identified in double homicide
- Li granted additional day passes
- Raleigh holds annual tour of backyard chicken coops, part of national spread of urban farming
- WHO warns Saudi coronavirus may be spreading; calls for urgent search for source
- Province announces service for Elijah Harper
- Aboriginal leader Elijah Harper dies
- An uncommon phenomenon
- Hundreds pitch in to dig out houses damaged, destroyed by Ochre Beach ice floe
- U.S. bill would give Canadian snowbirds more time to spend in the sun
- Marsh Madness: Photographers Fred Greenslade and Joe Bryksa capture spring migration's grandeur at Delta Marsh
- Guitar-playing astronaut bows out of space station with music video of Bowie's 'Space Oddity'
- Microsoft update to address Windows 8 complaints, confusion will be free; to be called 8.1
- Horrific crash kills minivan driver near Brandon
- Uganda: Blessed are the children
- Winning 6/49 ticket purchased in Winnipeg
- Aboriginal leader Elijah Harper dies
- Dogs can experience separation anxiety and depression just like humans
- VIDEO: Left on the ice to rot
- Paul McCartney to play Winnipeg Aug. 12
- Ontario steps in to help save ELA
- Saskatchewan professor wants to test the health benefits of nose-picking
- 'Revenge of the redheads': Ginger-haired Montrealers gather in celebration
- An uncommon phenomenon
- RCMP charge man with double-homicide in Ethelbert
- Passengers from diverted flight to leave Winnipeg Thursday night
Ads by Google
You can comment on most stories on winnipegfreepress.com. You can also agree or disagree with other comments. All you need to do is register and/or login and you can join the conversation and give your feedback.
Have Your Say
New to commenting? Check out our Frequently Asked Questions.
The Winnipeg Free Press does not necessarily endorse any of the views posted. By submitting your comment, you agree to our Terms and Conditions. These terms were revised effective April 16, 2010.