Only one team at the end of every season can say they’ve achieved the ultimate goal, lifting Lord Stanley’s Cup after playing through battles like no other. As for the other 31 teams, a sense of disappointment looms over their heads. The teams that fall short of expectations and even the teams that overachieve feel a sense of defeat all the same.
One of those teams is the Winnipeg Jets. And though they’ve only missed the playoffs once in the past seven seasons, they have experienced disappointment in recent years due to their lack of success in the post-season.
Since returning to Winnipeg in 2011, the closest the Jets have come to the Stanley Cup was during the 2018 playoffs, when they made it to the Western Conference final, losing the series 4-1 against the expansion team that shocked everyone, the Vegas Golden Knights.
While the Jets haven’t been back to the conference final since 2018, this season is their best chance to advance to the NHL’s final four and potentially reach the Stanley Cup final for the first time in franchise history.
The Jets started this season by winning eight straight games and going 15-1-0 in their first 16 outings, setting an NHL record by becoming the fastest team to reach 15 wins in a season.
The Jets’ record currently sits at 39-14-3, and they hold a commanding nine-point lead over the second-place Dallas Stars in the Central Division. One of the main contributors to their success this season has been the two-time Vezina Trophy winner and this season’s frontrunner for the award, Connor Hellebuyck.
Hellebuyck leads the league across all major goalie stats as of Feb. 19. He carries a .925 save percentage, a 2.06 goals-against average and boasts six shutouts in 43 games played. He’s on pace to play 60 plus games this season, which he has done five previous times in his NHL career – most recently in the 2023-24 season.
Having a top-flight goalie who consistently plays 60-plus games in a season is something that most teams in the league wish they had. Although Hellebuyck is delivering Vezina-caliber goaltending, to win hockey games, your team also needs to score goals, and the Jets are firing pucks into opposing nets with relative ease.
On the backs of forwards Mark Scheifele (63 points) and Kyle Connor (69 points) – 13th and sixth in the league, respectively – the Jets have scored a league-leading 202 goals and are firing on all cylinders on the power play, scoring 33.3 percent of the time on the man advantage, the best percentage in the league. If the Jets can maintain their power-play efficiency, they can set an NHL record for the most dangerous power play, topping the Edmonton Oilers’ mark in 2022-23 of 32.4 percent.
With 26 games remaining for the Jets, they will look to continue their dominance in the Western Conference. Then when the playoffs arrive, they will hope that their past playoff outcomes stay in the past, bringing new success to the city of Winnipeg by hopefully winning their first Stanley Cup in franchise history.
Get the latest news and trending stories by following The Hockey News on Google News and by subscribing to The Hockey News newsletter here. And share your thoughts by commenting below the article on THN.com.
