Revamped Jets flying high with 8-game winning streak

Mark Scheifele felt the Winnipeg Jets were on the verge of something special, which was a reason he wanted to stay beyond the end of his current contract.

The Jets center seems to have been on to something, because Winnipeg (28-9-4) is putting together a memorable season, alone atop of the NHL standings for the first time in franchise history.

“I don’t know if I’ve ever been in first place overall,” Scheifele told NHL.com this week. “The year we went to the (Western) Conference Final (in 2018) we were kind of hovering around there, but being first overall is obviously amazing. It just shows the resiliency of this group and how we’ve stuck together through good games and bad games, and it’s been a lot of fun.”

With their 2-1 victory against the Chicago Blackhawks on Thursday, the Jets have won eight games in a row, the longest streak in franchise history, entering their home game against the Philadelphia Flyers on Saturday (7 p.m. ET; CITY, NBCSP).

It’s an amazing turnaround, considering the upheaval and question marks surrounding Jets roster this past offseason.

But like the season itself, the moves made in the offseason have worked out perfectly.

The biggest came June 27, when Winnipeg traded center Pierre-Luc Dubois to the Los Angeles Kings for forwards Gabriel Vilardi, Alex Iafallo and Rasmus Kupari, and a second-round pick in the 2024 NHL Draft. Dubois, who could have become a restricted free agent four days later, had told Jets management he did not intent to sign a long-term contract with Winnipeg.

Three days after the trade, the Jets announced they would buy out the final season of the contract of forward Blake Wheeler, their captain from 2016-22.

Heading into training camp, questions surrounded the futures of Schiefele and goalie Connor Hellebuyck with each entering the final season of his contract. But the Jets locked them up Oct. 9, signing each to a seven-year, $59.5 million contract ($8.5 million average annual value).

“We saw the new pieces and were curious where they were going to fit in,” Scheifele said. “But I think a big reason why me and ‘Helley’ re-signed is because we saw such promise in our group. Me and Helley are real competitors, we want to win and that’s all we want to do, and when we came in to camp and had the conversations with [GM Kevin Cheveldayoff], we saw where this group really was. It just made a lot of sense and made us excited, and it’s proved that way day in and day out.”

Scheifele and Hellebuyck have been outstanding this season.

Scheifele has a team-leading 41 points (14 goals, 27 assists) in 41 games. He left the win Thursday early in the second period because of a lower-body injury and will be re-evaluated Friday. 

Hellebuyck is again in the conversation for the Vezina Trophy, awarded annually to the NHL’s best goalie, with a 21-6-3 record, 2.20 goals-against average, .923 save percentage and two shutouts in 30 games (all starts).

“I’m a guy that likes to work on my game and get better and not just in the summer, but every day of the season,” Scheifele said, “and last summer was like none other. With all the speculation and not [being] sure what was going to happen, it was still work as always to try and improve my game. I’m really lucky I get to play with some fantastic players and guys that score and guys that can make plays, and it’s just a matter of continue to work on your game and getting better, and I’ve really liked my game. 

“I still think there’s areas I can improve on, and that’s always the exciting thing about hockey.”

Along with Scheifele and Hellebuyck, the Jets are getting strong contributions throughout the lineup. Defenseman Josh Morrissey could be a candidate for the Norris Trophy, awarded annually to the NHL’s best defenseman; he has 32 points (seven goals, 25 assists) and a plus-24 rating in 41 games.

Meanwhile, Vilardi (19 points; 10 goals, nine assists) and Iafallo (17 points; seven goals, 10 assists) have fit in well in Winnipeg; forwards Kyle Connor (28 points; 17 goals, 11 assists), Nino Niederreiter (24 points; 12 goals, 12 assists) and Vladislav Namestnikov (23 points; five goals, 18 assists) have been productive; and forward Cole Perfetti, the Jets’ first-round selection (No. 10) in the 2020 NHL Draft, is having a breakout season with 29 points (14 goals, 15 assists). 

“It’s been our 5-on-5 team game, everyone has bought in,” Jets coach Rick Bowness told NHL.com. “When you have the success that we’ve been having, it’s due to the players and them buying in. Our team game has been very good from training camp on. It’s because of the complete buy-in from every player on this team. We’ve worked incredibly hard every game and we work hard for each other, and so it’s really the strength of our team game plan.”

Winnipeg has a well-rounded lineup and perhaps the deepest forward group in the NHL. There is not a big drop-off in talent from the first to the fourth line, as is the case with the first and third defensive pairs, according to Bowness.

“We have high-end talent,” Bowness said. “We have guys that can grind, we have guys that can block shots, hit, and kind of go up and down the lineup too. I think we have a lot of puzzle-piece players that can fit in anywhere, which helps. We have a lot of guys that work hard and give it their all and can make a lot of really good plays that people wouldn’t see from the outside, but we do on a day-to-day basis. It’s great, we’re deep, we have a lot of guys playing well, a lot of guys that are fitting in really well into our system.”

Cheveldayoff and Bowness deserve credit for Winnipeg’s success this season. Cheveldayoff revamped a team that was eliminated by the Vegas Golden Knights in the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs last season, and Bowness has the players on the same page. 

“You play the games, and you hope for the best result,” Cheveldayoff said Thursday, “but one thing that has been very nice to see is the way the players have to taken to what [Bowness] and [assistant Scott Arniel] and the coaches have been preaching. At the end of the day, it’s about the players performing and about the players trying to reach new levels and we always talked about in that room – ‘What are we capable of?’ They’re trying to prove to themselves and to each and every person -- their linemate or seat mate -- what they can achieve.

“They’ve accomplished nothing yet, they know that, but you put yourself in a good situation if you play like that night after night.”