‘Every game is a big one’

Scott Arniel has a pretty good idea of what it’s going to take to leapfrog three teams and sneak into the Stanley Cup playoffs.

Six games remain in the regular season and his team is currently facing a three-point deficit in the chase for the second wild card in the Western Conference. So going into Monday’s game with the Seattle Kraken, perfection – or something close to it – will basically be required.

“Just take care of our business,” Arniel said after his team rallied for a 2-1 victory over the Columbus Blue Jackets on Saturday. “We can’t do anything about what’s happening with the other teams. It may have to be (that) we have to go 6-0, to win all six games.”

This isn’t an exaggeration from the head coach of the Jets, nor is it a scare tactic.

To call it a rallying cry isn’t entirely accurate either, since the players already realize the grave nature of the situation they find themselves in.

Arniel wasn’t trying to provide motivation, just give an honest assessment; he realizes that the four or five teams in this race are facing one another regularly during the final two weeks of games.

By going 3-1 on this recent road trip, the Jets did enough to stay in the conversation.

Finding a way to slip past the Los Angeles Kings, Nashville Predators and San Jose Sharks — who will be in town on Apr. 16 in the Jets’ final game — won’t be easy.

Neither has rallying back from 11 points out to get within striking distance, as the Jets have done by putting forth a faster and more structured game coming out of the Olympic break.

While the hiccup against the Dallas Stars on Thursday wasn’t something the Jets could really afford, the response against the Blue Jackets told you everything you needed to know about the level of belief.

“Yeah, it was great. We needed it. Obviously, would have been great to be 4-0, but take what we can get,” said Jets left-winger Kyle Connor, who scored both goals on Saturday to hit 35 for the fourth time in his career. “It just speaks to the maturity of the group. And focusing on us and how we need to play. And not really worrying about too much outside noise.

“Looking at the standings, we’re going to need some help. But that’s something that we can’t be (counting) on. We’ve got to do our job here. So, that’s kind of where we’re at. The next game is the biggest (one) here — and focusing on being the best players we can and showing up.”

There have certainly been a few missteps for the Jets, but they’ve also put together a lengthy stretch of mostly consistent play.

That’s why the discussion surrounding the team has mostly shifted to the race, though a high draft pick remains a legitimate option, depending on how the regular season ends.

Even with the late push, the Jets go into Monday’s action tied for 25th in the league in points with the Toronto Maple Leafs.

If they’re able to continue to make up ground this week, the Jets could be trending towards a first round pick that ends up somewhere between 10th and 17th.

If they falter, a top-5 selection – and even the first overall pick – remains in play.

Therein lies the rub: in taking an arms-length approach, the appeal of getting a high-end forward or impactful defenceman with one of the top picks that could compete for a roster spot in the fall is undeniable.

Despite the character the Jets have shown in battling hard to the end, it remains apparent that this roster needs a talent infusion to move back to being a bona fide Stanley Cup contender by next season.

That’s of little concern for a group of proud players focused solely on the present and not ready to think about the future.

The flip side of the argument is that all the Jets need to do is get in, ensuring themselves of a different kind of lottery ticket.

Much like members of Team Tankathon are dreaming of a top pick and a chance to bring Gavin McKenna, Ivar Stenberg, Keaton Verhoef or someone along those lines, professional athletes don’t care about unlikely odds and aren’t intimidated by the prospect of another first-round matchup with the league-leading Colorado Avalanche.

The Jets don’t have to look far for evidence of what an eighth seed can do against the Presidents’ Trophy winner, as they were pushed to the limit last April and needed a pair of six-on-five goals — plus a marker from captain Adam Lowry in double overtime — to survive by the skin of their teeth against the St. Louis Blues.

Both of the aforementioned scenarios are currently on the back burner for the individuals that will be responsible for where the Jets ultimately land.

For this edition of the Jets, it’s all about the here and now.

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“We’ve kind of been stressing all along that we can’t dwell on what happened or just happened (in) the last game. Even the last period,” said Arniel. “You have to move on and focus on what’s coming, and the guys have done a fantastic job of staying focused that way.”

That steely focus – coupled with the precision of executing at an extremely high level and playing their best hockey of the entire campaign — is what it will take to keep the Jets slim playoff chances alive.

“Every game is a big one,” said Jets centre Mark Scheifele, who is up to 94 points. “We’ve just got to get our rest and be ready for another big game.”

winnipegfreepress.com/kenwiebe

Ken Wiebe
Reporter

Ken Wiebe is a sports reporter for the Free Press, with an emphasis on the Winnipeg Jets. He has covered hockey and provided analysis in this market since 2000 for the Winnipeg Sun, The Athletic, Sportsnet.ca and TSN. Ken was a summer intern at the Free Press in 1999 and returned to the Free Press in a full-time capacity in September of 2023. Read more about Ken.

Every piece of reporting Ken produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print — part of the Free Press‘s tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press’s history and mandate, and learn how our newsroom operates.