It was a feel good win for the Jets last night as although the tried hard for most of the game, did the right things, they simply could not get a lead on the Senators. Going through the obvious highlights would be easy to do and heaping praise on the usual suspects a typical response to game reviews. But there is something different brewing with the Jets and it involves the eventual and soon-to-come roster decisions faced by Paul Maurice.
Last night Nic Petan and Marko Dano had a great game in fact they were the ones that muscled through the Sens to get an odd-man rush and finally give the Jets a lead just past the midway point of the third period. Petan was also opened the scoring for the Jets to tie the game in the first period after tipping a Josh Morrissey blast from the point. However the praise from the head coach was on Matt Hendricks, the late veteran signing of the summer.
The fans though, at least the ones paying close attention, are starting to see that something is off here. Some would suggest it's getting to conspiracy theory levels and that tinfoil toques are being worn, many would say those folks are wrong.
First go back and look at the signing of Hendricks. This is a player who in 10 seasons has 140 more PIMs than he does games played. His total point production is 100 with one season over 20 points. He's not in Winnipeg to score so why exactly is he here?
Intangibles?
This tweet speaks volumes to the level of suspicion that is starting to appear within the fan base.
As a fan, when I read shit like this about a $700k "depth signing" in an https://t.co/lox1nZQh82 writeup, about a preseason game where this player had no appreciable impact, my only conclusion can be that somebody in charge is trying to force a narrative. @NHLJets pic.twitter.com/aSkN36NhTG
— FBS (@FBSXIX) September 28, 2017
Take the coach's comments at face value and as this question why on earth would you want a player to block shots with his face? Is that what Ehlers or Scheifele should do? What about the captain Blake Wheeler?
Speaking of the captain, who was not playing last night, does this praise for Hendricks seem a bit odd given Wheeler's latest examples of leadership away from hockey?
Now think about this tweet:
getting to those places a little faster is irrelevant if you have no idea what to do when you get there https://t.co/AbpYLzbkK1
— Mathmew Purrrr Oh! (@maxthesilent) September 28, 2017
Hendricks and his sometimes line mate Branden Tanev play somewhat similar games and are there to get in and cause disruption on the ice. That disruption means very little if you cannot at least attempt to get the puck when using speed to disrupt. The Jets track entries and puck recoveries in the offensive zone and wouldn't it be nice to see those numbers, just to compare to the eye-test. The point that Max makes is that being fast has no value if there is purpose to the use of speed and Tanev along with Hendricks personify that point.
What makes the Hendricks praise so curious to watch is that he and his role fly in the face of what the Jets have been ever so slowly been moving away from with the roster they purchased back in 2011. It has taken time but this spring saw the team finally move on from stalwarts of an era past with the buyout of Stuart and the release of Thorburn. A skilled and dynamic group of bottom six forwards and bottom pairing defence is something long awaited in Winnipeg and appears to becoming undone now.
Given the game and chemistry that Petan and Dano had last night and the fact that the latter, with more ice time than many this pre-season, has led the team in key offensive areas, is there not reason to give them praise and more time? Yet Hendricks and willingness to apparently block shots with his face is what's praised from the team.
The Jets did not play their finest game last night. At some point this team will have to rely on stopping more pucks that trying to outscore teams with 4 or more goals. They won, they came from behind to do it, but the message coming from the team is one of grit, heart and intangibles and that's troubling.
Paul Maurice has to trim his roster and get this group into what it will look like come opening night against the Leafs on October 4th. Do you want Matt Hendricks running wild or Petan and Dano? Nothing has to be permanent but hopefully the underlying logic to ice a faster, more skilled team becomes a permanent message from the team rather than what fans have been seeing lately.