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Jets Grades- 3rd and 4th lines

April 24, 2016, 10:10 AM ET [13 Comments]
Peter Tessier
Winnipeg Jets Blogger •Winnipeg Jets Writer • RSSArchiveCONTACT
Grades the 3rd and 4th lines


As the season wound down the bottom 6 on the Jets was a mixed bag of just about anything going based on injuries that were felling the roster. If you go back and look at any of the games its hard to get a feel for who was where at any given time on any given night. As this process of player grades is about who finished the season, one that regularly had a mixed line approach, there will be no effort here to distinguish who was where.

Halischuk
Thorburn
Lowry
Copp
Petan
Armia

Down the stretch the rotating bottom six with Lipon, Kosmachuk, Cormier, and newly signed Brandon Tanev was simply a product of filling holes as they appeared. Given the youth movement this season and the playoffs being a long shot for the team even by the mid-point of the season, this scenario was a positive out of a negative. Kids, or rather prospects, who would never be given the chance to play in a drive to make the postseason saw ice time against top opponents battling for their own playoff spots. For the Jets this outcome only provided valuable assessment time for them and the players to understand what possible next steps will be made. We’ll get to those guys in future blogs.


Matt Halischuk

Halischuk played 30 games for the Jets when he was called up from the Moose, the place he started the season. In those 30 games he had 3 points. This is down from 13-14 where he had 46 games with 5g 5a, and 14-15 of 47 games and 3g 5a. Do we need to go deeper here?

Halischuk had two seasons to cement himself as any consistent depth player and could not. Cast away from Nashville, Halischuk is what some one would want as a depth player but if he cannot displace Thorburn is he simply a mediocre option in times of trouble?

As a 46.05% CF player he’s not doing what a third liner should do, stop shots or get the puck down the ice for the top lines to take over.

Grade C+


Chris Thorburn

In the three seasons prior to the 3-year contract extension Thorburn had a total of 8 goals and 26 points. After that deal he has had 13 goals and 26 points with this past season being 6g 6a. This past season he has been a woeful 45.52% CF and when he’s off the ice the team moves to 52.61%. Is he the Mark Stuart of the forwards? Some would say ‘yes’ and that’s not wrong. The interesting thing is Thorburn played in all 82 games this season and 81 last season. He’s used almost everywhere and is trusted by the coach. How you describe what he does as he does not do hockey very well? He’s a below average player who has moments of brilliance that seem to last forever in memory.
The problem with Thorburn comes because there should be a reliable replacement option yet either the coach and GM don’t seem to believe it’s needed or one does not exist. Is that Thorburn’s fault? Is he good at hockey in the way that will make the team better in areas it needs to improve? No. Does he do his job the way the coach wants? Probably. So what do you grade him on- what he should be or what he is in the role he is used?

That’s the challenge with Thorburn, if more is required from that roster spot then it’s not coming from Thorburn. Again, is that his fault?

Grade C+


Adam Lowry

In his rookie season last year Lowry gave Jets fans plenty to be excited about but this year he seemed off. By the eye test he was slower, missing the play at times and generally fighting the game and puck. It resulted in a stint in the minors. Was it a wake up call from the coach or simply a smart move let him gain some confidence and timing back without the same pressure? It seemed to change the player and he finished with 7g 10a in 74 games down from 11g 12a in 80 last season.

As a possession player Lowry was at 46.79% on the year and had a PDO of 97.97. Why bring PDO up now? To start Lowry did not shoot to poorly at 6.3% as he shot about the same last year at 6.71% but he was a 50.3% CF player. Yet his on-ice save % was 91.91 and this year it was 91.67- is there something with Lowry’s game that pulls this number down, or helps pull it down? The funny thing here is his xPDO (expected PDO) is 100.1 and that’s what makes this all them more curious in terms of performance.

From the start of the season he had a 48.48% to Jan 1 2016 but from Jan 1 on he dropped to 45.52%. Maybe that’s due to the team and the slow decline they were making, but still, while everything is listed at even strength the Jets were a good team at 5 v 5.

Grade C


Andrew Copp

In his rookie campaign Copp was the one player many fans were curious to learn about- could he make an improvement over 4ht line journeyman of 4 season- Jim Slater? From a skill perspective Copp has some offensive upside that was vacant from Slater and could be more than Slater but has to learn the NHL game. How’s that for a traditional cliche scouting report?

Copp played 77 games and had 7g 6a while posting a 47.48% CF as the team’s stalwart 4th line centre. He shot a very respectable 8.52% while posting a PDO of 103.96. His on-ice save percentage was 95.44%- very impressive and it might indicate that Copp could be very good in his own end at shot suppression. In fact according to his Warrior chart Copp ranks as a tier 1 and 2 level player at goal suppression and shot suppression. If there is some offensive development for the player as he matures Copp could find himself moving up the ladder on the team.

Grade B


Nic Petan

He scored an ugly goal in his first game and then seemingly struggled after only to be sent down to the minors to develop. Petan was sent down in mid-November and did not return until mid-March, almost 4 months later. In his 26 games he had 2 goals and 4 assists for his rookie campaign.

Petan could drive play and was a positive possession player at 51.52% CF and had a PDO of 99.81 while shooting just 4.76%. For the talent that he is offensively something suggests his on-ice shooting percentage will rise and will his raw production numbers. Petan is one of those players that has tremendous skill but will need more than a Chris Thorburn or Matt Halischuk riding shotgun with him. He did get 2nd unit PP time during his time with the Jets as he was a deft passer in junior but his preparedness for the NHL game seems to need more time.

Should Petan work this summer at strength and speed with the knowledge of what being in the NHL means in terms of commitment he could come into his sophomore season with a better chance to perform and stick with the big club.

Grade C+


Joel Armia

Part of the blockbuster Evander Kane and Zach Bogosian trade, Armia appeared in 43 games for the Jets and provided one of the best highlight reel goals of the season. He had 4g and 6a in that time and provided capable depth when relied upon. He was a positive CF at 50.44% and had a decent on-ice shooting percent at 6.86% and a PDO of 98.53. Not bad for the rookie.

His most usual partners on the ice were Lowry and Copp, and looking forward could he find himself in a larger role given the state of the roster that is expected? That’s the big question- how does he fit into it more given the performance we saw this year?

Could a line of Petan, Copp and Armia be the next 4th line? One of skill, speed and size that could be as effective in the offensive zone as they are in the defensive would be a welcome change.

Given that Myers and Stafford have been slight upgrades for the Jets the real value of the deal from last season might be in Armia and Lemieux and fans might get a chance to judge further when camp opens in September.

Grade B-
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