Jets’ blueprint for success: discipline, depth scoring and goaltending

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This article was published 20/05/2021 (1574 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The Winnipeg Jets believe they have found a blueprint for success in their opening-round Stanley Cup playoff series versus the Edmonton Oilers. While Wednesday’s 4-1 win in Game 1 wasn’t flashy — one might even describe the approach as boring, given how offensively skilled Winnipeg’s roster is — it’s exactly the style the Jets need to adopt if they hope to advance against an Oilers team with arguably even more scoring power.

Strong goaltending, depth scoring and disciplined hockey were all key factors in Wednesday’s win, and will be important moving forward if the Jets hope to survive the best-of-seven series that resumes Friday in Edmonton.

“We’ve got to be comfortable. I think that’s also like playoff hockey, too. The refs kind of put the whistle away a little bit, so there’s a little more obstruction, there’s a little more guys getting in the way, holding on, getting away with things a little bit. I think it comes this time of year,” Jets veteran forward Paul Stastny said prior to the team’s optional skate Thursday.

“At the same time, is it boring? Maybe sometimes, but sometimes you’ve got to look at what’s the best chance for your team to win, and sometimes you’ve got to make adjustments based on who you’re playing against, and you’ve got to be patient. More than anything, I think we’ve got to be patient with our game.”

The Jets looked like a composed bunch for much of the night, even when Edmonton dictated long stretches of the game or hoped to engage Winnipeg in physical activity after the whistle. The Jets had just one shot on net in the second period before defenceman Tucker Poolman tied the game at 1-1 midway through the frame, banging home a Blake Wheeler rebound between the legs of Oilers goalie Mike Smith.

Poolman, who battled a bout with COVID-19 at the beginning of the year and missed the last four games of the regular season owing to an unrelated injury, had only one assist in 39 games this season. But you would never have noticed watching him drive past Dmitry Kulikov and beat Smith to give the Jets renewed life.

The Jets 27-year-old defenceman was simply picking his spot when he joined the rush, something the defence has been given the go-ahead to do by head coach Paul Maurice.

“So we give him a structure, not just to Tucker, where we’d say, ‘OK, you can skate really well, we want you up the ice all day.’ But there’s places we want to see our defencemen go and situations where all of our defence have the green light to kind of get involved,” Maurice said. “When he’s at his best you notice his skating, and it’s not just off the rush to the goal, it’s from net front to corner, it’s the swing-ins at the blue line. He’s a big powerful skater, so he’s far more noticeable. He’s got the green light to jump in at the right times, just like any of the other defencemen would.”

Stastny admitted Poolman’s goal brought a calming effect to the bench, which was only reinforced after Dominic Toninato, who was inserted into the lineup only because of injuries to Pierre-Luc Dubois and Nikolaj Ehlers, tipped home a Logan Stanley shot in the third period to put the Jets up for good. Winnipeg hasn’t always been good at keeping their emotions in check and have shared these struggles in the past.

That certainly wasn’t the case on Wednesday, and that discipline play extended into not going over the line whenever a scrum broke out.

Part of channelling those emotions, Stastny said, had to do with the adversity the Jets had gone through late in the year. Winnipeg won just three of its final 12 games in the regular season, including a seven-game losing streak that began to weigh on their collective minds.

“I thought the first period we played good and then there was probably like a six-, seven-minute window span there at the start of the second where we kind of quit moving our feet, we were kind of watching each other and hoping for another guy to make a play — kind of getting too separated. They hemmed us in for a little bit, and eventually they end up scoring that goal,” Stastny said.

“After Pooly’s goal, I think we relaxed a little bit. I think what we went through last, whatever it was, month, 10 games — it seems like forever ago — when you’re playing now, you’re just kind of worried about now.”

Stastny accounted for the only penalty in the game — a high-stick on Kailer Yamamoto late in the second period. That was a big part of the reason why the Jets were able to limit the Oilers two greatest scoring threats in Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl, with the duo combining for a minus-4 and just six shots.

It also took a stellar performance from Connor Hellebuyck, who made 32 saves in the win and kept the Jets alive during their slow stretches. The Jets defence, notably Neal Pionk, was able to get under McDavid’s skin, causing him to engage in the kind of after-the-whistle shenanigans often ignored by players of his calibre.

The Jets understand one win only goes so far, and the Oilers have likely taken the loss as a wake-up call and will be an improved team come Friday. But there is plenty to build off of Game 1, with a blueprint to improve on and a style they know can work.

“We just know they’re going to be better in everything they do. I think we can expect their best players to respond. They have some phenomenal players and that’s just the way the playoffs work,” Jets defenceman Josh Morrissey said.

“They’re going to obviously look at their game and see things they feel they can do better. We’re doing the same, and that’s sort of the chess match that is playoff hockey. As happy as we are with our performance in Game 1, we know that we’re going to have to be better. And I assume they’ll bring their best game tomorrow night, and we’ll have to be ready.”

jeff.hamilton@freepress.mb.ca twitter: @jeffkhamilton