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Jets ice another loaded roster vs Oilers tonight |
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There was a fair bit of mixed reaction to the last blog and there should be some clarification- the sky is not falling. The roster does not need to be gutted and rebuilt from the ground up. The point was that despite what we hear and are told, the changes in tactics and approach to the games seems static. That can change, but will it?
As for tonight Paul Maurice has decided to go forward and continue using a veteran heavy roster while sprinkling it with prospects. What becomes missed in this process is that it's probably the correct way to look at player evaluations during training camp.
Long held beliefs are that a team should slowly integrate the veterans above the league mandated required minimum and evaluate which prospects deserve a closer look- but is that an accurate way to gauge your prospects?
The Young Stars tournaments that are littered across the league now probably provide a better understanding of a team's prospects as they relate to counterparts. The players are on an island compared to the professional world with which they hope to enter so these tournaments are less about how players play together but their individual skills.
Now enter training camp, those prospects are no longer on an island so should they be playing with a majority of peers unlikely to make the team? Does that give a coach and/or a GM adequate information about how any player would fit within an existing roster?
The forwards tonight are: (in numerical order)
Copp
Tanev
Hendricks
Matthias
Little
Petan
Wheeler
Ehlers
Laine
Roslovic
Scheifele
Perreault
Defence
Kulikov
Trouba
Byfuglien
Morrissey
Myers
Niku
Hutchinson
Mason
Now out of this group who would you have the most interest in watching? The names that stand out would likely be Niku, Roslovic, Kulikov and Myers. On a secondary level perhaps Petan, and Hendricks.
Fans, and some would suggest coaches, should have a pretty clear understanding of what kind of player Tanev is as well as Matthias and Copp. So it's more about seeing who in the above can make an impression with how they play within tonight's roster. That makes sense. This is not a team that is stripping down and rebuilding with youth from day one. It's not a team that will be going with a huge learning curve for one third or more of it's roster. Any player who is going to earn a spot will be doing it by taking it away from some one else and then being a part of a stable group that has been committed too.
Of the four player listed as primary interest points it's Niku and Roslovic who have would have the biggest potential to make an impact for themselves. These two have been impressive thus far in camp and before. Maurice commented that Roslovic's conditioning stats were 'nothing he had ever seen before and off the charts' while Niku has been turning heads wherever he seems to play now.
Kulikov will be of interest as he is the new player and one that comes with some pressure to solidify a tumultuous bottom pairing if that's where he fits in. For Tyler Myers this is a fresh start after what has to be seen as a lost year for him, one that had him struggle with both injury and personal challenges that have been well documented. To see how Myers plays will be interesting as the Jets may potentially have one of the most competitive six players on defence, at least for position within the group.
There will be interest within the forward group, especially to see how players fit during special teams given the NHL's directive for calling penalties on everything. However this interest is concentrated around the bottom two lines and how they fit/play as opposed to the top lines which more about usage. In some ways this group is a far more compelling group to watch than Monday's selection simply because there's something new and intriguing with this group. Hopefully the fans see something new and intriguing on the ice as well because the potential for that is certainly possible.
Winnipeg Jets Blogger •Winnipeg Jets Writer • 
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