Jets Nation Recap: Thank God This Game Doesn’t Count
By Jeremy Wiebe
7 years agoRemember back in the day when the 1.0 version of the Winnipeg Jets were consistently destroyed by Wayne Gretzky and the rest of the Edmonton Oilers at old Northlands Coliseum? Well the franchise is new, the arena in Edmonton is new and The Great One retired 17 years ago. Yet the Jets were dominated by Connor McDavid and the Oilers in an embarrassing effort losing 5-2.
Make no mistake about it, McDavid is an outstanding talent who will thrill and excite fans in Northern Alberta for many years. But the Jets were simply awful tonight, especially in the defensive zone. At least it’s only preseason.
Game Thoughts:
- Connor Hellebuyck didn’t help his chances in winning the starting netminder’s job by surrendering 5 goals on 32 shots. Granted, he didn’t get much help from his D-corps but with this organization being loyal to a fault to Ondrej Pavelec, Hellebuyck probably didn’t supplant the incumbent with his performance tonight.
- The Jets power play was clicking on all cylinders in the preseason until tonight. Not only did the Jets go 0/6 with the man advantage, but they allowed the Oilers to score two short-handed goals as well. A painful reminder of last season’s woes with the man advantage.
- The penalty kill unit fared no better as the Oilers scored twice out of three opportunities they had with the power play. I have a feeling special teams will be in high focus between now and the season opener on October 13.
- It was not a good night for Ben Chiarot as he was responsible for two of the Oiler goals. Chiarot handled the puck like a hand grenade which blew up in his face most of the night. But everything is fine without Jacob Trouba. Well…no.
- A lone bright spot may have been the play of Brandon Tanev who scored the Jets first goal and looked to have the most jump on the team. Tanev may have found a role on the bottom six, thanks to tonight.
- Mark Stuart reverted to old form as he looked slow, plodding and generally bad. The game has past him by.
Hot Taeks:
Charts And Stuff:
All charts courtesy naturalstattrick.com
GIF Of The Night:
It says it all.
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