Some will call me a downer, some will say I'm pessimistic and others will say I'm being overly realistic but Jets fans can't continue to hide from the truth. What is that truth? I'd say we're still learning it via small sample sizes.
Last night's game versus the Penguins was as entertaining a game as fans at the MTS centre have seen. I'd wager it was probably more than what the Penguins thought they were going to get from the lowly Jets, a team that should be struggling to keep up in the central division. Regardless it was entertaining but for the right reasons?
Here's a list of narratives one could explore after this game:
Jets fight Penguins to push game to OT Physical Jets match Penguins until the SO Jets Stars Fuel Passionate Effort Jets shutdown Penguins PP in Penalty filled game
It can go on and on and on but if you are really honest is what we saw last night the type of game you want to see from Wheeler, Kane, Trouba and Buff? Against the league's best power play the Jets played with an undisciplined anarchy that could have left them licking their wounds entering the third period not down by one goal.
Don't be 'fooled by passion'
What I'm trying to get at is don't let the 'energy' and 'passion' of the game fool you- they could and should have won with all the opportunities that did not lead to chances. On the contrary they could and should have lost for the same amount they allowed the opposition.
If you didn't see the Tweet from Darrin Bauming last night he said that the Jets owner, Mark Chipman, was in the dressing room shaking hands and thanking the players. This game had that kind of effect on Chipman a guy who plays on a regular beer league team and knows the game of hockey, at least from a recreational experience. Maybe he saw the beer sales finally climb back to fall 2011 levels after the first period and that was good enough.
Take the Atlanta Association members Wheeler and Byfuglien and add in pledge Kane, they have 7 fighting majors between them and 8 goals. Be honest fans, is that how you want their efforts rewarded? The takeaway many fans have after last night's game is 'the players played like a team, stood up for each other and battled the Penguins forcing OT and a SO'. That's good but why can they not stand up for themselves and each other and play hockey too?
In some ways the latter statement is true, but it's also false and that's the conundrum with a game like last night's. Were they lucky to get out unscathed or were they lucky to stay with the Penguins? Or look at it another way, were the Jets good enough to play with the heavies from the east or good enough to not get blasted when in penalty trouble.
The pragmatic answer is probably both: good and lucky. Let me not take away from the good of that game because between the dumb penalties there was some hockey, real good hockey and very entertaining. Aside from Enstrom, who is clearly seeing the ice very differently than everyone else on it, there weren't many players struggling to any significant level of severity. Pavelec did his job and gave his team the chance(s) they needed. It was a team effort but one that fell short. That's where the luck comes in- Crosby got some on that SO goal that he could not find all game and the Jets didn't.
That's the difference maker there, the Jets don't have that kind of player who is that good and that lucky...yet. They have enough who can make a difference but weren't lucky enough to win last night. If you like the idea of the PDO metric that takes save percentage and shooting percentage together to regress to the mean of 1.000 then last night's game should make sense to you.
The Jets PDO? .995 (.914 +.081) The Penguins? 1.004 (.919 +.085)
While the margin of difference is thin it might explain why the best hockey player in the world finally found/exhibited some luck in the shootout to help his team earn the win. The lesson here is not about luck but about perspective. The game was great, the fans happy but that's not the way to go about winning games for this team. The players, coaches and management need to be fuelled by that effort not fooled by the events within the game, that taking 3 fighting majors a game by top players is a process worth repeating.
Next up Ottawa on Saturday night.