Rejuvenated power play not enough

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 04/03/2025 (192 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

ELMONT, N.Y. — Adam Lowry wasn’t trying to paint an inaccurate picture or grasp at straws looking through rose-coloured glasses.

As the captain of the Winnipeg Jets stood in front of reporters following Tuesday’s 3-2 loss to the New York Islanders at UBS Arena, he told it like he saw it.

For the fourth time in five games, the Jets were held to two goals or fewer, though it wasn’t due to a shortage of dangerous scoring chances generated.

The Jets had a much better start and controlled a good chunk of the play in the first period, building a decisive 10-2 edge in shots on goal before the game momentarily got turned on its head and the Islanders built a 2-0 lead.

Defensively, there were a few breakdowns that led directly to goals — one came shorthanded and another required a bounce off the stick of their own player.

This is not a team that’s fallen into bad habits or has abandoned its structure.

The Jets are now winless in three games (0-2-1) and working through what constitutes as a bump in the road for a team that recently rattled off an 11-game winning streak and still sits atop the NHL standings.

“The effort, the compete, the decision-making, the directness was there,” said Lowry. “This one, we look at as a whole and you take some positives. Obviously there’s no moral victories here, but it’s a step in the right direction, it’s a step closer to how we want our game to look.”

Jets head coach Scott Arniel shared the enthusiasm of his captain.

“Our pace and our pressure was back to what it was when it’s at its best,” said Arniel. “We’re in the funk right now when it comes to scoring goals. And teams go through these. You look around the league, a lot’s happened in different spots.

“For us, it’s (about) making sure that we’re defending well. If we’ve got to win these games 1-0 we’ll have to work to do that. But at the end of the day, I like that effort.”

The Jets, who slipped to 42-16-4, are back in action Thursday against the Philadelphia Flyers as they continue a four-game road trip.

Let’s take a closer look at this one:

THE DROUGHT ENDS

The Jets were encouraged by the puck movement and quality of the scoring chances with the man advantage during the previous two games — despite seeing their drought reach a season-high six games — and the power play finally struck on its second opportunity on Tuesday.

With Anders Lee serving a high-sticking minor, the Jets snapped the puck around before defenceman Josh Morrissey unloaded a slapshot that changed direction off the stick of Islanders forward Simon Holmstrom and fooled goalie Ilya Sorokin.

“Obviously, we were on a bit of a cold streak there,” said Morrissey. “For us just getting back to the details of what’s made us a good unit. For both units, really. The details and the execution. The tendency can be when it’s not going in to over pass and look for the perfect opportunity.

“We attacked their net a bunch of times and you wear them down, keep it in, win battles, puck recovery was great. So, we need to keep that tempo and build off that for the rest of the year.”

The goal was Morrissey’s ninth of the campaign and snapped a zero-for-17 slump with the man-advantage for the Jets, who added a second power-play marker from Nikolaj Ehlers to finish the evening two-for-three.

“Our power play was tremendous because of the fact we shot the puck,” said Arniel. “I’m not talking about just go out and shoot the puck blindly, we set ourselves up to throw pucks in there quickly and like we’ve talked about all year, those rebounds, it creates chaos and it allows us to get into our game.”

THE ABSENCE

Jets defenceman Dylan Samberg was not available as he dealt with a family matter, which opened the door for Haydn Fleury to return to the lineup for the second time in a month.

Arniel said Samberg was scheduled to meet the team in Philadelphia on Wednesday, so he is expected to be in the lineup on Thursday.

Fleury was used on the third pairing with Colin Miller and had one shot on goal and four shot attempts in just under 14 minutes of ice time.

Samberg is a key on the penalty kill and the Jets gave up a power-play marker that opened the scoring.

With Dylan DeMelo engaged with an Islanders forward along the boards, the Jets got a little aggressive trying to retrieve the puck and it led to a coverage breakdown.

Thanks to some strong puck movement, Brock Nelson found Kyle Palmieri for a one-timer at 16:49 of the first period.

THE KEY PLAY

Grandview product Ryan Pulock takes advantage of a defensive-zone turnover and blasts a shot through traffic that changes direction off the stick of Alex Iafallo for the game-winner.

THE THREE STARS

1. Ilya Sorokin, Islanders, made 26 saves.
2. Brock Nelson, Islanders, scored a goal and added an assist.
3. Josh Morrissey, Jets, scored a goal and added an assist in 25:45 of ice time.

THE TARGET?

Nelson was also involved as the Islanders extended the lead, converting a pass from Maxim Tsyplakov just 1:33 into the second period.

It was a milestone night for Nelson as he moved past Islanders legend Bobby Nystrom for fourth place in career games played for the Islanders (901).

Nelson is a player of interest for many contenders looking for a second-line centre and this game provided another example of why he’s on the wish list of many general managers.

A pending unrestricted free agent, Nelson could play a similar role as Paul Stastny and Sean Monahan after they were acquired by the Jets at the 2018 and 2023 NHL trade deadlines.

Nelson, who played college hockey at the University of North Dakota and hails from Warroad, Minn., is a smart player that can be used in all situations.

Although he’s not a bruising hitter, Nelson is strong on the puck and is both a great distributor and a strong finisher who has been north of 30 goals in each of the three previous seasons — including a career-high 37 in 2021-22.

The fly in the ointment is it’s still uncertain if the Islanders are going to sell off their UFAs like Nelson or Palmieri or continue to try to climb up the Eastern Conference standings to try and grab a wild-card berth.

EXTRA, EXTRA

With just over 11 minutes to go in the third period, Jets centre Rasmus Kupari left the contest after he was on the receiving end of a hit from Islanders forward Hudson Fasching. Kupari’s legs got tangled up as he went into the boards and his head also appeared to make contact with the boards as well.

Jets goalie Connor Hellebuyck made his 47th start of the season and finished with 26 saves.

The Jets healthy scratches were defenceman Ville Heinola and forward David Gustafsson.

ken.wiebe@freepress.mb.ca

X and Bluesky: @WiebesWorld