The Winnipeg Jets are a middling team or at least that appears to be who they are. This is who they were expected to be. The Jets are exactly who they should be based on previous seasons and our knowledge of their play. In fact, the only real surprise is that Connor Hellebuyck seems to be struggling a bit, but that has happened in the past and he has bounced back over time. So leaving him out, who are the Jets.
The Jets are a team with questionable defensive depth. The Jets have not had a solid defence for years now and it seems that Kevin Cheveldayoff is content with his patchwork group of players that tends to struggle overall. There are some solid to excellent pieces, but they are hindered by the overall lack of skill of the group. Josh Morrissey is great, but he cannot be expected to be everything to everyone. The Jets have needed to improve their defence for years and that is still a glaring need today.
The forward group is a good, but flawed crew. Kyle Connor is really good at scoring goals, but he has to be because his defence leaves a lot to be desired. However, he is really good at scoring goals. Mark Scheifele is another forward who leaves a lot to be desired defensively. Good news is him and Connor usually play on the same line, so they can be sheltered as a duo. However, that means the other lines have to be good to go which is hard when the Jets lack some depth pieces especially with Gabe Vilardi being out with a knee sprain.
Are the Jets world beaters? Nope. Are the Jets horrible? Far from it. Are the Jets showing signs of mental toughness and not collapsing when the going gets tough? Absolutely and that alone is a huge bright spot. There was a time when the Jets would collapse at any sign of adversity. The fact we see them toughing it out and playing better because of it speaks volumes about how they have improved mentally.
The Jets are who we thought they were. They are not perfect nor are they a top team, but they are a team and a fine one.
