The team that couldn’t score

Opinion

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This article was published 06/06/2021 (1557 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

It would be easy to blame this all on Mark Scheifele.

His split-second decision to blow up Jake Evans in the dying seconds of Game 1 is looming large over the North Division final, with the offensively-starved Winnipeg Jets clearly missing the services of their suspended star centre. They suddenly can’t generate anything five-on-five. Their power play is putrid. And their shuffled forward lines are lacking cohesion. A self-inflicted wound, to be sure.

But to pin a stunning 3-0 series deficit to the Montreal Canadiens entirely on one absent player would be giving everyone else in this lineup a pass — which, ironically, the Jets are having trouble completing one of these days. Make no mistake: There should be plenty of soul-searching and mirror-gazing going on right now among those who haven’t been banished to the sidelines.

Somewhere, Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl must be muttering to themselves: “We got swept by THESE guys?”

Sure, not having Scheifele hurts. But the Jets are supposed to be one of the deepest forward groups in the NHL, one built to survive a loss or two along the way. And yet, here we are, Winnipeg now needing to win four straight elimination games, something that’s only been done by four teams in NHL history. Based on their current play, I don’t like their odds of making history.

So instead of pointing the finger purely at the guy who took himself out of the series — there’s been enough of that already in the last few days, much of it completely over-the-top and crossing the line with regards to his family — the rest of the roster shouldn’t be let off the hook for what is shaping up as a big blown opportunity against what was supposed to be a tired Montreal team that finished below them in the standings.

I’m looking at you, Pierre-Luc Dubois, who’s been given added responsibility in Scheifele’s absence and was invisible once again in Sunday’s 5-1 loss that puts Winnipeg on the brink of elimination.

Dubois has now gone 23 straight games dating all the way back to Apr. 5 since he last scored a goal. The only contribution to the scoresheet in Game 3 was a retaliation penalty he was whistled for midway through the third period, his team trailing by three at the time. That simply can’t happen. There seems to be little energy or urgency to his game at a time his team could desperately use a dose of both.

I’m looking at you, Kyle Connor, the best pure scorer on the club who has been blanked in two straight. More concerning, he’s also been involved in two key defensive blunders that led to goals. One in Game 2, on Tyler Toffoli’s shorthanded snipe that was the difference. And a costly early turnover on Sunday night that contributed to Corey Perry’s opening tally.

I’m looking at you, Blake Wheeler, who, along with Connor, was an ugly minus-four in what was basically a must-win. No doubt they’re missing their usual centre in Scheifele, but the Jets need them to be better — much, much better — to have a chance.

I’m looking at you, Andrew Copp, with 15 regular-season goals but still searching for the first of the playoffs. He did have a great early opportunity in Game 3, but the Jets need some key guys to start finishing those this time of year. Close won’t cut it. Copp, too, took a foolish penalty with just over six minutes left in this latest loss, his frustration boiling over as he cross-checked Paul Byron.

And I’m looking at you, Paul Stastny, who clearly isn’t 100 per cent after missing the first two games against Montreal with an undisclosed injury. He made an impact in the wrong way Sunday. He was partially burned by Joel Armia on a shorthanded rush that led to the Canadiens making it 3-0, then sent him flying into the net and was penalized for the play. He also clipped Shea Weber with a careless high-stick early in the third period. Montreal scored on the ensuing power play nine seconds later to make it 4-1.

The list could go on, quite frankly. Other than Adam Lowry, who has Winnipeg’s only goal since Scheifele was given a four-game suspension, and Nikolaj Ehlers, who was creating chaos all night, there just wasn’t a whole lot happening besides the expected excellence from Connor Hellebuyck. Add time is quickly running out.

Just look across the ice to see numerous examples of players stepping up on the big stage. There was Artturi Lehkonen scoring the game-winning goal on Sunday, 48 hours after he set up Toffoli’s game-winner at Bell MTS Place. The 25-year-old was a healthy scratch in Game 1, only getting into the lineup to replace the injured Evans, who is out indefinitely, Talk about making an instant impact.

Or how about the fourth-line of Perry, Armia and Eric Staal, who have given Winnipeg fits this series and now have a combined 20 points (eight goals, 12 assists) this post-season. That was the veteran trio hemming the Jets in their own end for an extended period early in Game 3, eventually taking advantage of Connor’s giveaway to open the scoring just 4:45 into the game.

Just like that, a Montreal team filled with confidence that hasn’t trailed at any point in the series, or for their last six playoff games dating back to going down 3-1 in the best-of-seven first round series against Toronto, was off to the races. And a one-goal advantage felt like so much more.

The buck shouldn’t stop with the forwards, even though scoring is clearly an issue right now. Winnipeg is still giving up far too much in their own end and having trouble with basic break-outs. Losing Dylan DeMelo to an injury on his first shift of Game 1 certainly stings. Some of that is on the players themselves — mobile puck-moving defenceman Ville Heinola for Game 4, anyone? — and some of it has to be on the coaching staff.

As much as Paul Maurice and company outsmarted Dave Tippett and his crew in the first round, rookie NHL bench boss Dominique Ducharme is pushing all the right buttons right now while Winnipeg struggles to make the proper in-game and between-game adjustments.

The Jets spoke of how they quickly got to using “one brain” against the Oilers in the first round. Now, against the Canadiens, I’m just seeing a lot of brain cramps, quite frankly.

No, the series isn’t over, even if it might feel that way. The fourth one is the hardest to win, as the old saying goes. But if the Jets are waiting for someone to swoop in and save the day, it’s not happening.

Scheifele can’t return until Game 6. If the rest of his teammates can’t find a way to raise their collective game, they’re not going to see him until next season. And they’ll have no one to blame but themselves.

mike.mcintyre@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @mikemcintyrewpg