Webster’s describes loyalty as “a feeling of strong support for someone or something.” There is no denying the Winnipeg Jets organization is loyal to certain people. There are still six players remaining from the Atlanta Thrashers days. You remember the Thrashers don’t you? They weren’t very good but True North Inc loved them so many stayed on, some much longer than they should have.

Don’t get me wrong. Every team would take Blake Wheeler and Dustin Byfuglien in a heartbeat. This isn’t about them or Bryan Little or Toby Enstrom. 

I have never met Chris Thorburn personally but from all accounts, he sounds like a gentleman who takes the time to sign every autograph and is always there to visit a children’s hospital. He has been a pillar in the community since the Jets were reborn in 2011. All those are excellent traits to have as a human being.

Sadly, being a good person off the ice doesn’t translate to being a good hockey player on the ice. 

Thorburn has never been blessed with natural ability. Even he will admit to that. What Thorburn needed to do to succeed in the NHL was outwork everyone while using his size and physicality to his advantage.

Before 2004, Thorburn would have been an ideal bottom six forward as the neutral zone trap was the hot trend in the league and grinders were seen as valuable assets to any team. But when the NHL decided to reenforce the rules thus opening up the game following the 2005 lockout, speed, skill and puck possession started to overtake grit and toughness.

When looking at analytics in particular corsi, the numbers aren’t good. Going back to 2011-12, Thorburn was at 42.6% corsi, 48.8% in the shortened 2012-13 season, 43.1% in 2013-14, 49.0% in 2014-15 and 45.5% in 2015-16. So far this season, Thorburn’s corsi is at 44.2% through five games played. 

To put it in laymen’s terms, whenever Thorburn is on the ice, the Jets are more often than not hemmed in their own zone which leads to scoring chances for the opposition, which in turn leads to goals against, which in turn leads to more losses for the Jets. 

It isn’t like the Jets can’t use other players besides Thorburn. Joel Armia has moved up in the depth chart, thanks to his strong start to the season. It was unfathomable that Armia was scratched in favour of Thorburn in Minnesota back on October 15. 

Marko Dano was recently called up from the Manitoba Moose, largely due to a Drew Stafford injury. Dano brings more speed and skill than Thorburn and it’s possible that Dano is a better fit with the

Nic Petan and Chase De Leo aren’t natural right wingers and probably need top six minutes in order to be effective. But with the game going skilled and size not mattering as much, they would be better assets on the Jets than Thorburn. 

If the Jets are that desperate for grit, perhaps JC Lipon or Brendan Lemieux should get a look. Lipon is a natural right-winger who won’t light up the scoreboard at the NHL level. But he does bring speed and is an agitator that can drive the opposition. Lemieux was injured in training camp which hurt his chances to make the big club. The son of the notorious Claude Lemieux is a natural left-winger so he may not replace Thorburn per se, but he does bring a little offensive upside to go along with his old man’s nastiness. 

Thorburn is set to become an unrestricted free agent at the end of the season. There’s no sense going forward with him anymore. The Jets know what they have with him and it isn’t good enough. It’s time to put loyalty aside and do what’s best for the team. There is no choice.

Corsi numbers courtesy stats.hockeyanalysis.com