Central Division stakes are high

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This article was published 29/02/2024 (615 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

DALLAS — The question, at its very core, is both complex and simple in nature.

When you look at the top three teams in the Central Division, it’s incredibly congested in this battle for first place between the Winnipeg Jets, Dallas Stars and Colorado Avalanche.

Depending on what happens at the top of the Pacific Division, where the Vancouver Canucks currently hold the top spot despite a recent hiccup, the reward for finishing first in the Central seems to be a pretty significant prize.

Not only would the team that finishes first in the division have the opportunity to play one of the wild card-teams, they would also avoid having to try and knock out one of the Jets, Stars or Avalanche in the opening round.

When you consider how tough a road it would be to reach the Western Conference final, trying to forge the path of least resistance would seem like a pretty significant reward.

What do the players think?

“I think home-ice is important, that’s why you want to finish as high as you can. But if you want to win the Stanley Cup, you’ve got to beat some pretty good teams,” said Jets captain Adam Lowry. “With that being said, you’d obviously like to set yourself up in the best possible way, try to minimize travel, try to make sure that you get (on-ice) matchups as long as you can, when it comes down to late in the series or a Game 7, that you can kind of dictate (those matchups with the last change) and have your fan support.

“But I look at the West and there’s going to be eight really good teams in the playoffs. We know that the first round is going to be a grind and to get out of the first round, we’re going to have to play at the top of our game, regardless of who our opponent is.”

The top seven teams look to be locked in, with a handful of clubs remaining in the thick of things for the eighth seed — which is where the Jets found themselves last season going into the first round.

There’s no doubt the Jets are on track to improve on that during the stretch run.

“It’s just about using these next (24) games to make sure that our defensive structure is where we need it to be and that special teams are clicking,” said Lowry. “So that when we get into a tight series, we’re able to handle those tight, intense games and that we’re comfortable in any style of game. Things like that. We want to make sure that we can set ourselves up to have as long a run as possible.”

The Jets and Stars have made a pre-emptive strike heading into next Friday’s NHL trade deadline, while the Avalanche have been scouring the market themselves.

It’s clear the arms race in the West is already significant, with other moves expected to occur involving teams such as the Edmonton Oilers and Vegas Golden Knights, among others.

There’s a recognition the cream of the crop in the Central Division is impressive — and one reporter put it bluntly when talking with Stars forward Matt Duchene on Thursday, noting at least one of the top three teams is guaranteed to be eliminated in the opening round and not advance to the final eight.

“It’s hard to believe. That’s why they’ve talked about going back to a (format of) 1 vs. 8 and 2 vs. 7, 3 vs. 6. It’s unfair that one of these teams is for sure going to be out in the first round — and that goes across the board and across the league,” said Duchene. “There’s never going to be an easy playoff series in the NHL. You would love to see two teams that are good enough to win the division go at each other in the first round and you don’t have to be part of that. So, it’s a tough question to answer because you don’t necessarily wish for one thing or the other because you don’t know what the future holds.

“And you never want to be ignorant and say you want to play this team instead of this team. It doesn’t work that way, especially with how good the league is. Anybody can beat anybody, but we want to win the division, absolutely.”

Stars head coach Pete DeBoer went so far to suggest those four games in hand the Jets currently hold over them leaves them in the driver’s seat in this race for first place.

Lowry smiled when DeBoer’s viewpoint was shared with him.

“If we take care of our business and we win the games we need to win,” said Lowry. “Games in hand are a big thing, but they don’t mean anything if you don’t win them. (The Stars) might have a lighter schedule, they might be a bit more rested. Maybe we throw the ball back in their court.”

The idea of trying to avoid a particular opponent in the opening round doesn’t sit well with Stars general manager Jim Nill.

“I’ve been around for a long time and it really doesn’t matter who you play,” said Nill. “It’s easy to sit there now and say boy you would like to have this matchup and do this. Be careful what you wish for. I’ve lived that many times.

“The biggest thing is how we play. We’ve got to get our game going to the level we need to be at and do that consistently and if we do that, we’re going to be fine. To win the Stanley Cup, you’ve got to be the best — and that’s the challenge.”

That’s basically the same mentality the Jets are taking during the final 24 meetings of the regular season — which includes one more game with the Stars, two more with the Avalanche two more with the Canucks, one with the Oilers, one with the New York Rangers and one with the Golden Knights.

“We’ve been there before and it hasn’t worked out,” said Jets winger Nikolaj Ehlers. “It’s great (to be battling for top spot), but in the end, it doesn’t matter where you really end up. If it’s first or eighth, you want to come into the playoffs feeling that you are playing the right game with all four lines and everyone is contributing in their own way. That’s what we’re looking for, more than (first place). Obviously, we want to win games but we want to win them the right way, we want to play full 60s and all of the hockey cliches.”

No matter what happens during the stretch run, one thing is certain: the chase figures to be compelling and that’s good news for all parties involved — the players, the coaches and the fans of the sport.

ken.wiebe@freepress.mb.ca

X: @WiebesWorld