The Jets are circling… and so are the questions

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This article was published 15/09/2011 (5194 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

 PENTICTON, B.C. — They have a history, even if it’s a bit nondescript and inglorious.

 Still, ask around the NHL and the general consensus is these reborn Winnipeg Jets have an exciting young core of talent that has the beginnings of a solid foundation.

 But, let’s face it, as main training camp opens this weekend Winnipeg’s new sporting obsession is a bit of a blank canvas. This is a franchise now sporting a new home, under new ownership and with a new GM and head coach calling the shots — all of which makes this bunch one of the most compelling and fascinating storylines to follow in the 2011-12 season.

 And now it really gets interesting. The first bucket of pucks gets dumped on the ice Saturday at the MTS Centre for Day 1 of camp and here are 10 issues/questions to mull over and discuss leading up to the historic home opener on Oct. 9:

 ALL EYES ON BIG BUFF

 When he’s engaged mentally and physically, Dustin Byfuglien is a game-changing defenceman/man mountain/linebacker hybrid. But he’ll arrive at camp with legal issues hovering and concerns about a reported 10-15 pound weight gain. The worry from those in the know isn’t what Byfuglien weighs in at this week, it’s how he manages it during the season. Consider this: in the first half last season Byfuglien had 15 goals and 40 points; in the final chunk he managed just five goals and eight assists.

 HOW SOON, MR. FEHR?

 He’s a big man with touch and Eric Fehr’s skill set would be coveted by any NHL team, and especially by the Jets, who finished 20th in scoring last season. But the Winkler product is still recovering from shoulder surgery and will begin the season stuck in sick bay. He’s a potential top six winger and if he can stay healthy, then giving up a fourthround pick and Danick Paquette will be hailed as a steal of a deal.

 A BOGO GO-GO

 Defenceman Zach Bogosian, as the Jets have said all along, got his new deal done this week and it’s a solid move by the organization going forward. So many have been so quick to criticize his 2010-11 campaign, but the third-overall pick is just 21 and already has 199 NHL games under his belt. There is still a potential huge upside here and now that the club has locked him up for two more years at least that will be realized here in Winnipeg. And so now it’s up to Bogosian to take the next step in his career development.

 MORE POP FROM THE MIDDLE

 The top two scoring centres on this team from a year ago were Bryan Little (18 goals, 30 assists) and Nik Antropov (16-25) and this team needs more production from that position. Little is just 23, but did pot 31 goals three years ago and Antropov’s numbers dropped dramatically last year, falling by eight goals and 26 points. If those two boost their totals and talented youngster Alex Burmistrov continues to develop, those scoring concerns are soothed. Consider this in the interim: two of the Jets’ top scorers a year ago were defencemen: Byfuglien and Tobias Enstrom.

 THE POWER OF PAVELEC

 The Jets’ No. 1 goaltender has got game, but like most young netminders there is a need for more consistency. He’s just 23 and posted some decent numbers last year — a 21-23-9 record with a .914 save percentage and 2.73 goals against average — but what Winnipeg needs is to see more of the brilliance he flashed for the Czech Republic at the worlds last spring, where he was 7-1 with 1.88 GAA.

 THE KID IS ALL RIGHT

 First-round draft pick Mark Scheifele has shown enough here at the Young Stars tournament to have Jets’ management convinced they made the right move by going off the board a bit at the draft and grabbing him seventh overall.

 He’s almost certainly heading back to the Barrie Colts, but he could force an interesting decision if he looks comfy with the vets in main camp and in the pre-season games.

 HERE’S TO THE NEW BOSS

 Claude Noel is a veteran hockey man who through 19 years working the bench from Toledo, Ohio, to Roanoke, Va., Dayton, Ohio, to Kalamazoo, Mich., Milwaukee to Columbus to Manitoba has established himself as the type of coach who can squeeze the absolute maximum out of his charges. He’s known as a communicator and a teacher, but isn’t afraid to bring down his fist when needed.

But his time as an NHL boss is limited to 24 games on an interim basis in 2009-10 in Columbus after he replaced Ken Hitchcock. Noel has surrounded himself with a solid staff in Charlie Huddy, Wade Flaherty and Pascal Vincent but this roster is new to this quartet, and vice versa.

 SOME DEFENCE, PLEASE

 An autopsy on the 2010-11 season revealed many reasons why the Thrashers were not in the Stanley Cup derby come April, but the biggest is this: in a 30-team league they were tied for 29th in goals against. The defensive corps of Byfuglien, Enstrom, Bogosian, Ron Hainsey, Mark Stuart, Johnny Oduya, Randy Jones and Derek Meech — along with Pavelec — should help improve those numbers. Most of all, however, the team must improve on a penalty-kill unit that ranked just 27th.

 MORE SHINE FROM A RISING STAR

 He’ll wear No. 9 in Winnipeg and given that digit’s history — we’re thinking Bobby Hull more than Doug Smail — it will come with huge expectations.

 And Evander Kane seems completely cool with all that. Just 20, Kane scored 19 goals last season and the common thinking is he’s just getting comfy with his game. In a league filled with promising young talent, Kane has as bright a future as any. And if he grows into a 30-40 goal man, this franchise and this town will have a new sporting hero.

 WELCOME TO THE NEIGHBOURHOOD

 It’s not an easy thing, as the Jets have discovered, to load up the truck and move an entire franchise — let alone do it in about four months. It’s a given the MTS Centre will be a madhouse on game night, but the transition involves more than just what the product that steps onto the ice looks like, it includes keeping those players content in their new environment. This is the NHL’s smallest market and you have to live here to get why this town is special, but good first impressions can be lasting and handling that is both True North’s biggest strength and challenge.

 ed.tait@freepress.mb.ca Twitter:@WFPEdTait