Good news then the worst
news one could have expected; that for the Winnipeg Jets in regards to the
injuries suffered the other night vs Edmonton. Yesterday Jets coach Paul
Maurice said newly acquired Drew Stafford is day to day; which is somewhat of a
relief for fans. Now to the bad news, 5th leading scorer Mathieu
Perrault is likely out until the playoffs with a lower body injury. Often
injured Jets forward Matt Halischuk is said to be ready within 2 weeks from his
current injury.
In the short term the Jets have recalled European forward Carl Klingberg from
the AHL. He might just might start on the 2nd line with Mark
Scheifele & Drew Stafford. Or he could be spotted on the 3rd or
4th line as well. I’d suggest try a period or two with the 2nd
line; see what if any offense he can create.
No
time to waste
The Jets are in a decent spot; but by no means safe and sound. They are four
points up on the 9th place team and only five points behind in the
Central. But and this is a huge but; moving forward teams in which the Jets are
in a playoff race with are playing each other most nights til the end of
the month; which means one if not both teams are guaranteed to get points on
most nights.
The
4th line
The fourth line is a good energy line; good for banging, crashing…. But we know
Maurice doesn't trust them 5 on 5 100% and as a line they have FOUR goals all
year. That it’s must improve going forward.
For the record I like Anthony Peluso; think he could be the
next Darren McCarty-Randy Mckay type player. They started out an enforcer
turned out to be a decent third liner. But here in the now and present; he
should not be playing against the Nashville’s or the Detroit’s he serves no
purpose in those games and takes needless minors only in those games.
With the exception of being a decent penalty killer; the same
can be said TJ Galiardi. He has been put on waivers twice without being
claimed. He has 1 goal in 36 games and is -8. Jim Slater I think is a perfect 4th
line center; better than average penalty killer, great on faceoff’s and will
scrap when asked to. That is where Halischuk would come in handy against more
skilled teams.
Plenty
of d-man but…..
The one good thing for the Jets; their current blue line is the best it has
ever been hands down bar none in franchise history. Think of it this way;
the Hawks & Kings previous cup winners had a great defense they also
have/had 3 defensive minded; 3 offensive minded defenseman. The Jets have are very
close to that ratio; and when Jay
Harrison, Adam Pardy are your 7th & 8th in the depth
chart that is not a bad thing.
Now the negative; before the injury to Perreault they were very thin up front.
Just my opinion but ownership must buck up and give Cheveldayoff the
green light to add more salary; nothing substantial but he must ensure they give the players and its fans the best
chance of success.
At this time of the year there are plenty of players who could be had for close
to nothing. Those players are strictly depth forwards. http://corbyshockeycentral.blogspot.ca/2015/02/cost-for-winnik-high-7-depth-players.html A player like Arizona’s David Moss would be useful against the
Wings/Preds; and would help the middle of the road PK; someone like that would
cost the team a 6-7th rounder. On the other hand one can get a
decent top nine forward for a 2nd to a 3rd round pick;
and it appears we could have plenty of selection (lots of sellers).
Need
more help on the farm
In past seasons the Jets had players like Aaron Gagnon, Eric
O’Dell when they were called upon they chipped in 3-4 goals. That is exactly
what they need from Klingberg, a player that can be relied on to contribute
offensively and unfortunately Patrice Cormier is not the answer. Past Klingberg,
O’Dell and maybe John Albert; there is no one else on the farm that can
remotely help. Look for the Jets to make some “minor league deals” to add more
depth.
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