Happy New Year

Another year has come and gone, and they seem to steam roll faster as you get older. I have made a point of not "wishing for the weekend" anymore because I realise those days behind you are spent. It's very similar to the NHL schedule when you think about it. Players can't wait for the long road trip to end, they can't wait for the Xmas break, or the Olympic break, always looking forward. The problem with parity (three point games) is that all those losses in November, December, and January are killer in March and April. 

Happy B Day Andrew Ladd

If Andrew Ladd was enjoying the same production as he was last season he would be in serious discussion for Team Canada in Sochi. Of course that production was a career high in regards of point per game production so it unrealistic to bet on that again. That being said, his 22 points in 32 games is still good production and 8 goals are second best on the team. There happens to be 5 players tied with 7 goals though so if he wants to keep that spot he needs to heat up. Ladd is the captain and unquestionably the leader of this team, they need him to take the team by the throat soon or the playoffs will be a pipe dream. 

Game day in Florida

 

How bad do you wish you were in Sunshine Florida right now? You could spend the day at the beach or whatever your pursuit is. Then you could go to the big mall by the rink and grab a bite to eat. Leave your car illegally parked because its free at the mall, and $20 at the rink. The funny thing is that there will be 6,000 to 8,000 tickets available tonight, and all will be cheaper than the parking...

The Jets had better be properly focused on tonight's game. These two points are huge, every bit as important as Tuesday was. The only difference is the opponent is taking on water and the season is already lost. The Jets cannot slip on the banana peel tonight, that would be a disaster. Look for Michael Frolik to have a big game tonight, returning home to Florida where he was drafted.

A look at the Jets, 1/3 into the season

 

The Winnipeg Jets have had a very interesting season so far to say the least. Their leading scorer is Bryan Little who is on pace to shatter his career best. This despite the fact that Captain Andrew Ladd has experienced a major correction on goal scoring (as was to be expected) and Blake Wheeler has not exactly lit the world on fire. Dustin Byfuglien went without a goal for over a month and now is shooting the lights out. Suddenly he is on pace for an 17 goal season... Ondrej Pavelec had to take his game to another level and he has, posting career best numbers so far in SV% and GAA. Al Montoya is right there with him as well, giving the Jets a solid one-two punch they badly need. 

Huge Win!

 

Colossal, enormous, gargantuan, giant, humongous, immense, mammoth, massive, monumental, tremendous, or my favourite, magnificent! Look at the standings this morning, the Jets are now 4 points out of a playoff spot. Now the Coyotes do have 3 games in hand, but they moved a step closer to Vancouver as well. It was also a key win last night in that both Minnesota and LA won so they didn't lose any ground there.

Must win? MUST WIN!

What is more depressing? The Jets are in a must win situation already or that it occurs in DECEMBER? Winnipeg comes into this game a little banged up but rested. The Rangers have been playing .500 hockey for a while and both clubs have the same amount of points. The only difference? The Rangers hold down 8th spot in the east, the Jest are 12th in the west and need to start winning...NOW.