Losing in the NHL always stings. The 6-1 loss for the Jets in Boston Thursday night hurts twice as much, as Winnipeg’s playoff hopes become even more faint.
Pure and simple, it was all about execution. As Adam Lowry talked about on the CJOB post-game show, it wasn’t effort that killed the team, it was execution. But in life, and in hockey, there are many more lessons learned in defeat than in victory.
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And really, this isn’t the time to micromanage what went right and what went wrong in Game 68 of the season. This might be the time to start looking at the big picture. There is no greater lesson for this team than to look across the ice at Marco Sturm’s team and try to learn from them.
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A year ago, in so many ways, the Boston Bruins were living the life that the Jets are experiencing this season. After three consecutive 100-point seasons, the Bruins finished six games under .500 last season. Like the Jets this season, Boston had too many injuries and not enough depth scoring to be a playoff team. Like the Bruins, the Jets have a quality core of players. Swayman, McAvoy, Zadorov, Pastrnak and the Lindholms. Hellebuyck, Morrissey, Pionk, Lowry, Connor, Scheifele and Vilardi. Say no more.
So what did the Bruins do to quickly reinvent themselves as a playoff team? Well, Bruins general manager Don Sweeney didn’t do major surgery on his team, but he wasn’t afraid to move a veteran or two to get younger and faster. Brandon Carlo became Fraser Minten and a first-round pick.
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Sweeney also found a way to improve the Bruins’ forward depth through free agency. In so many ways, Jets GM Kevin Cheveldayoff has those same challenges. Get younger, get faster, without compromising most of the core group. Reinventing the bottom six forwards will be vital to reinvigorating the roster, as will a possible aggressive play in free agency. There has been a ton of loyalty displayed in Winnipeg through this whole decade. Now is the time to be pragmatic.
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Yes, the Jets lost in Boston badly, but forget the loss. Learn from it. Understand that the opponent faced the same challenge a year ago and is back in a playoff spot, just one year later. There is no reason to think that the same can’t happen in Winnipeg, too.
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