Post-Game Talk: Mustard Kittens tamed, Jets win 5-2

[Guardian17]

 

[bustamente]

Agree on the comments about Joshua he has really upped his game this year, Pionk on the other hand has been a bit of a disappointment, but the difference from Heinola's first game this year to how he is playing now for me has been a eye opener

 

[WpgSteve]

If only they would move a little more.

A lot of the PPs that give us trouble have a player circling up high. It needs to be a guy with a good shot, good playmaking, good skating and strong on the puck. The configuration causes chaos because you can't leave the guy open but as soon as you challenge him some else is open down low. The mobility also causes chaos since the PK is constantly having to move to defend a shot while the player cuts across the top at speed.

I don't know if the Jets have someone that could play that role though. Maybe Heionala some day. Dubois maybe, but I don't know that he has the playmaking ability. Ehlers has the same problem. Wheeler maybe if he plays like last night but he tends to lose the puck too easily these days.

Either way, I'd like to see them take a guy from down low to play a more mobile role up top. The players down low have to move more too but that was better last night.

 

[GNP]

Ok full disclosure and its a bit embarrassing.

This fall I decided to splurge and pay a snow removal company (I know the owner) $770 to remove the snow from my driveway and front step from November until the end of March. I “was” going to be traveling allot this winter for work to catch up for lost time and needed the help for my family. Usually the guy has young guys doing the heavy lifting. This season he has lost all his support staff and is out their slogging it himself with his wife at times. I have been feeling really guilty when the wife shows up because she does my front step while he snow blows and shovels the driveway and I literally hide in embarrassment/guilt while my 20 pound dog barks are her through the front window.

The only thing that helps my guilt is I shovel my mother in laws place when I am in town. There is nothing worse than the drive of shame down my street after a hard shovel at Grandmama’s and seeing all the dirty looks from the neighbors digging out as roll up and wait for the service to put the finishing touches on my driveway.

That brings an end to my confession father

I wouldn't feel guilty at all, as you have a business to run, and when you get home from travelling etc, the last thing you want to do, is go out and shovel snow. If your paying $ 770.00 for 5 months, then that's a good deal, however if your paying $ 770.00 per month, your really paying heavy money. I would assume it's $ 770 for 5 months.

I pay guys off Kijiji to cut my lawn in the summer because my lawn mower broke down, and I pay $ 20.00 per cut, so it comes out to $ 60 to $ 80.00 per month, depending on how much rain there is. Just saves me the hassle, and also gives some guy money for gas for his car. There will be guys that quote $ 250.00 to $ 300 per mo -- usually bigger companies.

Right now,I do the snow myself for the exercise, but likely in the future I'll hire someone, especially if I decide to travel in the winter.

 

[snowkiddin]

He gets too much flack about his poor defense. He’s been better in that regard this season but for the most part he’s managed to outscore that deficiency in the past.
It always been overblown.

I’m probably in the minority but I never found his defence to even be THAT bad. He’s not winning any Selkes but he’s always been adequate for a scoring winger IMO

 

[BoneDocUK]

I’m probably in the minority but I never found his defence to even be THAT bad. He’s not winning any Selkes but he’s always been adequate for a scoring winger IMO

I think that part of his game has improved away from 26/55 (along with the rest of his play, arguably). Fewer of those casual fly-bys, much less cherry-picking for that lead pass and seems to be much more focused on looking to knock pucks down and/ or intercept and transition quickly.

And his addition to the "power kill" has really impacted how opposing teams can set up, IMO, because he's so quick from that first step and so lethal with the puck on his stick.

Ehlers has also been outstanding for years now -- this year, clearly, he's suffered from injuries, but as a complementary set of wingers they must be among the league's best, especially as Perfetti hits his stride.

But props to KC -- he has been brilliant this year, and deserves all kinds of kudos.

 

[KingBogo]

Really though? When Ehlers is back it’s not worth trying Stastny with Wheeler and Harkins of Svech? I love Lowry and agree he serves a role on the team for more than 5 minutes a game. But his offense is such a determine to the team for his TOI and he simply doesn’t shut down top 6 opposition like he used to.

I think everyone gets emotional about this with Lowry and Wheeler. There are things this team can try that can bolster offense that compliments the improved back end.

I don’t get the reluctance tbh. It’s not like what they’re doing is some slam dunk.

That's a tweak, and I personally don't think Svech is anywhere near Lowry. We really don't have anyone who is in a position to push Lowry aside. Maybe Gus in a couple years, assuming he gets some significant time avoiding injuries. And as we are seeing the Central is becoming a bit of a goon fest and for good or bad Lowry is the 1st guy to step up in most situations.

 

[GNP]

To be fair Ehlers being better than Connor wasn't controversial at all until Connor took a massive step this season (whereas Ehlers seemed to take a massive step a couple of seasons ago). If you asked me which of Ehlers / Perfetti / Connor would be our best winger next year, I honestly wouldn't have a clue who to pick. Nice problem to have, though.

Last year, and years before, I would have said Ehlers, but as of this year, it's definitely Connor. I believe he is, or was, Top 10 in NHL scoring, and has really improved his all around game. One of the best in the NHL.

I've also noticed Connor is now driving the play a lot more than he used too, so he's really developed into a star player.

 

[Joe Hallenback]

I actually don't think Wheeler has been the weak link on that line. Scheifele was. Now Scheif is playing better it isn't surprising to see Wheeler put up points

Our top 6 hasn't been bad at all we just have no depth scoring. If we had some we are in a playoff spot

 

[Ducky10]

That's a tweak, and I personally don't think Svech is anywhere near Lowry. We really don't have anyone who is in a position to push Lowry aside. Maybe Gus in a couple years, assuming he gets some significant time avoiding injuries. And as we are seeing the Central is becoming a bit of a goon fest and for good or bad Lowry is the 1st guy to step up in most situations.

But Svechnikov actually has more points than Lowry this season and has done it in a top 6 role. You don’t think Stastny is capable of being an effective 3C with Wheeler? His P/60 is much better than Lowry’s and he’s good on the defensive side of the puck.
Lowry can still take care of business in games it’s necessary, the lineup shouldn’t be written in stone. I think the team is better served running 55-80-25-17 up the middle and using Copp as a top 6 winger. I just don’t see how anyone can argue Lowry’s shutdown abilities outperform his lack of offense.
Having said that, I’ve argued giving him a run at 3C with Stastny and Wheeler after Ehlers gets back. His metrics at least show he’s at least not drowning from and xgf perspective. Maybe the combination of 26-25 can help turn that into some actual results.

 

[GNP]

I actually don't think Wheeler has been the weak link on that line. Scheifele was. Now Scheif is playing better it isn't surprising to see Wheeler put up points

Our top 6 hasn't been bad at all we just have no depth scoring. If we had some we are in a playoff spot

Yes, I agree, and one of those depth pieces is Ehlers, and maybe we need one more on the 3rd line. Maybe Gustaffson will turn out to be just that, as I think he has pretty good scoring hands. We could use another guy on the 4th line, and I also thought Trevor Lewis from last year was pretty good, just wonder why they didn't resign him.

 

[Ducky10]

Feel like Morrissey deserves a lot of praise this year. After having a rough couple years he's really turned it around. Easily worth his contract playing like this.

He and PLD have both rebounded very nicely.

 

[ps241]

I wouldn't feel guilty at all, as you have a business to run, and when you get home from travelling etc, the last thing you want to do, is go out and shovel snow. If your paying $ 770.00 for 5 months, then that's a good deal, however if your paying $ 770.00 per month, your really paying heavy money. I would assume it's $ 770 for 5 months.

I pay guys off Kijiji to cut my lawn in the summer because my lawn mower broke down, and I pay $ 20.00 per cut, so it comes out to $ 60 to $ 80.00 per month, depending on how much rain there is. Just saves me the hassle, and also gives some guy money for gas for his car. There will be guys that quote $ 250.00 to $ 300 per mo -- usually bigger companies.

Right now,I do the snow myself for the exercise, but likely in the future I'll hire someone, especially if I decide to travel in the winter.

yes it was $770 for the season.

 

[KingBogo]

But Svechnikov actually has more points than Lowry this season and has done it in a top 6 role. You don’t think Stastny is capable of being an effective 3C with Wheeler? His P/60 is much better than Lowry’s and he’s good on the defensive side of the puck.
Lowry can still take care of business in games it’s necessary, the lineup shouldn’t be written in stone. I think the team is better served running 55-80-25-17 up the middle and using Copp as a top 6 winger. I just don’t see how anyone can argue Lowry’s shutdown abilities outperform his lack of offense.
Having said that, I’ve argued giving him a run at 3C with Stastny and Wheeler after Ehlers gets back. His metrics at least show he’s at least not drowning from and xgf perspective. Maybe the combination of 26-25 can help turn that into some actual results.

Agree a 3rd line of Stastny-Lowry-Wheeler would probably be effective. I just don't see the Jets being near deep enough at forward that Lowry gets pushed down to the 4th line at this point. I'd say maybe if Chevy made a TD move for a top 6 RW so that you can use Copp as your 3rd line center with 25 & 26. Now that would be a much deeper forward group. Of course we need to start putting wins together to be that type of buyer.

 

[ps241]

Not surprisingly, we have a completely different definition of "lady" from each other.

Great gif, though!

Honestly I love the gif. The guy pulls the chair out and I guess he forgot he was attending a rodeo and this women probably grew up on a ranch. Her full on Steer wrestling tackle is epic. This would be even funnier if it was a husband wife combo.

 

[Ducky10]

Agree a 3rd line of Stastny-Lowry-Wheeler would probably be effective. I just don't see the Jets being near deep enough at forward that Lowry gets pushed down to the 4th line at this point. I'd say maybe if Chevy made a TD move for a top 6 RW so that you can use Copp as your 3rd line center with 25 & 26. Now that would be a much deeper forward group. Of course we need to start putting wins together to be that type of buyer.

Well, if he doesn’t produce with 25-26 you might as well try Harkins there. They have the same number of points and Harkins has more goals. I think the Jets top 9 are reasonably ok when healthy, just not with Lowry at C gobbling 12-14 minutes.

 

[scelaton]

yes it was $770 for the season.

Ok, quit rubbing it in!

 

[WPGChief]

I actually don't think Wheeler has been the weak link on that line. Scheifele was. Now Scheif is playing better it isn't surprising to see Wheeler put up points

Our top 6 hasn't been bad at all we just have no depth scoring. If we had some we are in a playoff spot

Comments like these remind me of when the Oilers pointed the finger at Tobias Rieder for the team not making the playoffs.

Don't get me wrong, depth scoring is important, and Jets have certainly had that in spades in previous years (and missing Ehlers this year also hurts) - but since 2019 they have been forced to deploy Lowry (and friends) as a pure matchup line to make up for the defensive shortcomings of continually giving Scheifele and Wheeler the ice time to get outscored by 0.51 G/60 each game. This year, Scheifele has gotten 34% of 5v5 icetime, and then Lowry 25% (btw, who is at 1.2 GF/60 and 1.55 GA/60) - that's already 60% of the available 5v5 ice time. Then add on Dubois at 30% (outscoring opponents by only 0.11 G/60), and that's where you get 10% (or 6-7 minutes per game) to the 4th line to do... whatever they do, be an energy line or whatever.

Jets never had a depth problem as bad as the Oilers, but they do have a significant deployment problem. Wheeler has been a little bit "cold" in terms of his shooting, but neither of them have been close to breakeven in terms of a 5-game rolling xG for the last month (and 2GP isn't enough to draw on whether or not they've improved for the better) - at least with Scheifele there's some argument to be made that he is still creating lots offensively (and has done better without 26), but over the whole season he's essentially put up the 2nd worst xGA/60 in RAPM for any Jets forward since 2017-18:

Depth scoring, even if you get it, isn't overcoming the troubles of the deployment issues - it's just masked and looks a little bit closer because of goaltending (even if it's not at a Vezina caliber level).

 

[TheGovernment]

yes it was $770 for the season.

These are the luxurys in life that make the winter much more bearable.
We have quite a big driveway, as does everyone else in our cul-de-sac. I pay 170$ a month. They use a truck with a plow, takes them 10 mins. Would take me 2-3 hours with a snowblower..... Money well spent.... Especially this winter lol

 

[ps241]

Ok, quit rubbing it in!

Yea all joking aside I am not sure I have ever got a better deal on anything.

 

[ps241]

These are the luxurys in life that make the winter much more bearable.
We have quite a big driveway, as does everyone else in our cul-de-sac. I pay 170$ a month. They use a truck with a plow, takes them 10 mins. Would take me 2-3 hours with a snowblower..... Money well spent.... Especially this winter lol

Before family my life was set up to travel for long periods of time for work. I lived on a condo and had underground parking. The house makes it a bit more clunky but there are always ways.

 

[surixon]

Feel like Morrissey deserves a lot of praise this year. After having a rough couple years he's really turned it around. Easily worth his contract playing like this.

Yeah, he's been great. He's playing at a low end all around number 1 dmen level again and carrying his pairing. I'm very happy with his turnaround.

 

[surixon]

While I agree, he has risen in ranking this year because he has improved in several areas. He has clearly been our best winger, maybe our best forward. That wasn't always the case in the past.

Agreed, prior to this year Ehlers was the best winger because he scored extremely well at 5 on 5 and drove play at an elite level. This year Conner has upped his playbdriving big time so his superior all around scoring is now sets him ahead.

 

[Jetfaninflorida]

Wheeler is around 20th in the NHL in scoring depending on what metric you use. He’s still a very capable top six player, no matter what the haters say.

He has scored 4 goals. So you are going to have to do some pretty serious cherry picking of stats and some creative math to make him a top 20 scorer.

 

[Joe Hallenback]

Comments like these remind me of when the Oilers pointed the finger at Tobias Rieder for the team not making the playoffs.

Don't get me wrong, depth scoring is important, and Jets have certainly had that in spades in previous years (and missing Ehlers this year also hurts) - but since 2019 they have been forced to deploy Lowry (and friends) as a pure matchup line to make up for the defensive shortcomings of continually giving Scheifele and Wheeler the ice time to get outscored by 0.51 G/60 each game. This year, Scheifele has gotten 34% of 5v5 icetime, and then Lowry 25% (btw, who is at 1.2 GF/60 and 1.55 GA/60) - that's already 60% of the available 5v5 ice time. Then add on Dubois at 30% (outscoring opponents by only 0.11 G/60), and that's where you get 10% (or 6-7 minutes per game) to the 4th line to do... whatever they do, be an energy line or whatever.

Jets never had a depth problem as bad as the Oilers, but they do have a significant deployment problem. Wheeler has been a little bit "cold" in terms of his shooting, but neither of them have been close to breakeven in terms of a 5-game rolling xG for the last month (and 2GP isn't enough to draw on whether or not they've improved for the better) - at least with Scheifele there's some argument to be made that he is still creating lots offensively (and has done better without 26), but over the whole season he's essentially put up the 2nd worst xGA/60 in RAPM for any Jets forward since 2017-18:

Depth scoring, even if you get it, isn't overcoming the troubles of the deployment issues - it's just masked and looks a little bit closer because of goaltending (even if it's not at a Vezina caliber level).

I don't disagree with your assessment. I think depth scoring and over usage are probably linked. I always thought they should be moving to a situation where Wheeler is down in the lineup, whether that is with Dubois on the 2nd line or playing say with Copp on a 3rd line. I believe that is one of the weaknesses they have shown coaching this year and it kind has cost us.

I mean we can't score, we can defend but all the teams above us have 15 to 30 more goals scored and much better forward usage then we have. But it has been disappointing to see guys like Lowry,Vesalainen,Harkins etc.. struggle to score