Sizing up the Jets’ potential first-round playoff opponents By: Mike McIntyre Posted: 7:01 PM CST Wednesday, Mar. 6, 2024

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 06/03/2024 (907 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The Winnipeg Jets are going to the NHL playoffs. Of that, there is no longer any doubt.

Sure, it’ll be some time before the hockey club officially punches its post-season ticket. But a sizzling 39-17-5 record, with 21 regular-season games remaining, has them home and cooled on that front.

The real question around here isn’t whether or not the Jets will make Lord Stanley’s annual spring fling, but who they’re going to dance with in the first round.

Realistically, there are five potential partners given the separation that has occurred in the standings and how difficult it is to make up substantial ground in a short time.

Win the Central Division and the Jets will play one of the two Western Conference wild-card teams.

Go ahead and pencil the Nashville Predators in as one, barring an extreme collapse by then and/or incredible push from the St. Louis Blues, Seattle Kraken, Calgary Flames or Minnesota Wild. The Vegas Golden Knights or Los Angeles Kings are likely to be the other.

Finish second or third in the Central and the reward is expected to be facing one of the Dallas Stars or Colorado Avalanche.

How have the Jets fared against these opponents so far this year? What about historically in the playoffs? Do they meet again this season? What kind of additions have they/could they make by Friday’s NHL trade deadline? Is there a preferred matchup?

We’re glad you asked. Here they are, ranked in order of the current standings (best to worst).

Jets vs Stars:

Season so far: Nov. 11 in Winnipeg (Stars 3, Jets 2). Nov. 28 in Winnipeg (Stars 2, Jets 0). Feb. 29 in Dallas (Stars 4, Jets 1)

Still to come: Apr. 11 in Dallas

Playoff history: None

Trade deadline 101: They made a big blue-line add by winning the Chris Tanev sweepstakes, sending two draft picks and a prospect to the Calgary Flames. They might not be done, although they don’t have a lot of money to play with. The most important add might have already come from within, with rookie forward Logan Stankoven recently promoted from the AHL (he was leading the league in scoring) and now lighting it up in the NHL (five goals and three assists in his first six games). They now boast arguably the league’s best top nine, especially once injured forward Tyler Seguin returns.

The skinny: They have been Winnipeg’s kryptonite this season, especially in the most recent meeting, and this would seem to be a poor matchup for the Jets. Could they turn the tide on a bigger hockey stage?

Jets vs Avalanche:

Season so far: Dec. 7 in Colorado (Jets 4, Avalanche 2). Dec. 16 in Winnipeg (Jets 6, Avalanche 2)

Still to come: Apr. 13 in Colorado

Playoff history: None

Trade deadline 101: The busiest team so far, with a huge splash on Wednesday. First, they acquired puck-moving defenceman Sean Walker from the Philadelphia Flyers in exchange for a first-round draft pick and veteran forward Ryan Johansen (a cap dump). Then, with a sudden surplus on the blue-line and a need up the middle, they shipped defenceman Bowen Byram to the Buffalo Sabres for centre Casey Mittelstadt. Are they done? Stay tuned.

The skinny: Although the Jets have performed well head-to-head this year, this would be a difficult series to say the least. Not only would you have to contain the likes of Nathan MacKinnon, Mikko Rantanen and Cale Makar, but there’s the outside possibility captain Gabe Landeskog, who has missed the entire season after undergoing cartilage transplant surgery, could be ready by the playoffs. Uh-oh. There are questions in net, but they may just have enough firepower to make that moot.

Jets vs Kings:

Season so far: Oct. 17 in Winnipeg (Kings 5, Jets 1). Dec. 13 in Los Angeles (Jets 5, Kings 2).

Still to come: Apr. 1 in Winnipeg

Playoff history: None

Trade deadline 101: Something may be cooking. They cleared some much-needed cap space Wednesday by placing a pair of depth players on waivers, and you have to think GM Rob Blake wants to do something to bolster his club that started the year off red-hot, but has fallen on hard times in recent months.

The skinny: Well wouldn’t this be a tasty little treat for hockey fans. Gabe Vilardi, Alex Iafallo and Rasmus Kupari vs. Pierre-Luc Dubois? That sounds fun! The Jets played one of their most complete games of the year against the Kings in December, after playing one of their worst in October. Goaltending remains inconsistent, although Cam Talbot has rebounded lately after an ugly stretch.

Jets vs Golden Knights:

Season so far: Oct. 19 in Winnipeg (Golden Knights 5, Jets 3). Nov. 2 in Vegas (Golden Knights 5, Jets 2)

Still to come: March 28 in Winnipeg

Playoff history: Golden Knights beat Jets 4-1 in 2018 Western Conference Final; Golden Knights beat Jets 4-1 in 2023 first round series.

Trade deadline 101: Flashy, as usual. They acquired big winger Anthony Mantha from the Washington Capitals on Tuesday (a player the Jets had previously sniffed around on), and then GM Kelly McCrimmon went out and got defenceman Noah Hanifin from the Flames on Wednesday. Is that it, or could more be coming — especially with Mark Stone now on LTIR with a lacerated spleen that could keep him out well into the playoffs. The defending Cup champions, who have been slumping lately, will pull out all the stops for a repeat.

The skinny: Hello darkness, my old friend. This just screams “Danger! Danger” for the Jets, given their poor track record and head-to-head play earlier this year. Would third time (in the playoffs) be the charm? We may find out.

Jets vs Predators:

Season so far: Nov. 9 in Winnipeg (Jets 6, Predators 3). Nov. 26 in Nashville (Predators 3, Jets 2).

Still to come: March 13 in Winnipeg. April 9 in Nashville

Playoff history: Jets beat Predators 4-3 in 2018 second round series.

Trade deadline 101: Quiet so far. They aren’t expected to be big buyers. Nor are they likely to be sellers, given their current position along with the fact they have no pending UFAs on the active roster. That hasn’t stopped speculation that first-year GM Barry Trotz could try to accelerate the re-tool by moving some valuable parts (G Juuse Saros, D Alexandre Carrier) to fetch a tidy return.

The skinny: On paper, this would be the “easiest” matchup, as Nashville (35-25-3) has the lowest point percentage of the eight Western Conference clubs, along with the lowest goal differential (+8). They also happen to be one of the hottest teams in the league right now, on an 8-0-1 run that includes impressive wins over contenders such as the Golden Knights, Kings and Avalanche. That’s always the risk with a wild-card team — you run into an opponent who went surging up the standings late in the year and carry that momentum over.

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It’s a bit of a fool’s game to go the “if the playoffs started today” route, but let’s take a shot.

If we’re going by point percentage — which is fairer since teams have played an uneven number of games — the Jets are currently first in the Central Division and tied with the Vancouver Canucks for first in the Western Conference.

That means Winnipeg would be the No. 1 seed in the West right now and face Nashville, who own the second wild-card spot by virtue of having a lower point percentage than Vegas.

If we’re going strictly by points, the Jets are second in the Central and would face Colorado.

Realistically, it’s still much too close to predict how exactly this will play out. The Stars, Jets and Avalanche are separated by just four points, while the Kings and Golden Knights (one of which likely finish third in the Pacific Division behind Vancouver and Edmonton, with the other falling to a wild-card spot) are tied in points with the Predators.

The final six weeks of the regular-season should serve up no shortage of excitement as these contenders continue jockeying for position and prepare for a truly compelling quest for the Stanley Cup.

mike.mcintyre@freepress.mb.ca

X: @mikemcintyrewpg