The forward lines have been reviewed the defense has been analyzed and there's really no point in worrying about goaltending as it's Hellebuyck and Brossoit until it does not work. So what's left for the Jets to discuss before the season starts in St. Louis tomorrow?

1. Can Connor Hellebuyck be the beast he was on the PK last year?

Hellebuyck played the most minutes on the PK of any goalie in the league last season at 353 minutes, almost 20 more than number two Pekka Rinne. He had the 5ht best on-ice save percent at .902 amongst goalies who played 200 PK minutes. In that situation his team had the 2nd lowest redirection of shots attempts towards the other net. The best PK goalie by on ice save percent, John Gibson, had the second best total of shot attempts against the opposition in the PK situation.

At 4 on 5 PK Hellebuck moved up to 4th best in on-ice save percent at .907 and was 3rd worst for having team get shot attempts at the other end during the PK. The most telling stat that should draw into question the likelihood of the team being so good on the PK is that Hellebuyck faced the highest SA/60 on the PK at 120 shots attempts per 60 minutes. Only Halak on the Islanders was in the same postal code.

2. Is there any jump in production left for the youth of this team?

Some Jets fans are betting that youth will still develop and produce more. So let's use the youth, Connor, Laine Ehlers, Roslovic, Vesalainen as our targets.

Laine- two season with 36 and then 44 goals. He's likely the only one most fans expect to see increase significantly again but is he good for 6-8 more goals? Laine had 20 of those on the PP- so where does the increase come from that's an increase of 55% from his rookie season.

Connor- two seasons 2 and 31 goals. Obviously Connor will not have another season with such a massive jump but again he is expected to improve. Connor had the 3rd most PP minutes as a forward with 7 goals in 16 more games than Scheifele who had 8. It would seem he, like Laine did, is going to have to find that bump on the PP to make improvements. With 24 even strength goals basically one every 4 games is there room to move there? Perhaps having a healthy Scheifele for 82 game helps.

Ehlers- three season of 15, 25 and 29 goals. In theory he should be cracking thirty goals this year but given his drought in the playoffs and the chatter this year from Maurice about being a shooter first and playmaker later. That's what Ehlers is and when that change for him to shoot less started is curious. Definitely the latter part of last season he seemed to slow down on individual shots for but what about on the ice in general? His individual Corsi For was 18.17/60 from Mar 15th on it as 15.67/60. His iSCF from October to March 15th was 8.52/60 and from March 15th on it was 6.96/60. Those need to change and perhaps being the veteran on a line with Roslovic and Veslainen is the elixir.

Roslovic- Two seasons, 32 games 5 goals. Jack Roslovic had his learning year at the NHL level a year after the the test of the Jets you did. Where Roslovic excelled was his positional play across all areas of the ice. It was not ideal for points but the speedy forward (centre or RW) exhibited offensive instincts that yet to materialize- is this the year? His SCF% was a respectable 52.9% and his iCF% was 3rd highest on the team just behind Perreault. He was in the middle for iSCF/60 and that's where the expectations are starting. He needs to create more and generate more when on the ice and having Ehlers on the wing might be helpful as they are two fo the fastest Jets.

Vesalainen- It's very difficult to predict what the rookie will do this season. He's very aware defensively and he has so far earned the trust of the coach. What he has to do is replace Armia's output as well as be some one who can be trusted in all areas of the ice. While replacing Armia's output of 12 goals and 17 points might seem easy consider that Ehlers had 15 goals and 23 assists in his rookie season- should Vesalainen have that benchmark to meet? He could do it but meeting Armia's might be more than reasonable.

3. Can the coaches keep innovating?

Last year the Jets developed a power play one that no one expected to be so good. That happened because of talent and how the play with the man advantage was created and curated. While luck has to be at play for the insane increase in underlying numbers for Wheeler certainly skill and ability came to pay. The unit(s) were good and is there anything left to do? Certainly teams are going to key in Laine more now and the tactics are going to have to revolve around him among others. With a faster and more agile line up to start the season will the coaches develop some new strategies and tactics to thwart the stale and predictable? Adapting to advantages was one reason for success last year and it might have to happen again this year.

4. Does age catch up to the remaining Atlanta core?

While Wheeler was a lates season addition his age is of concern with his next contract as is that of Bryan Little and Dustin Byfuglien- the last there members of the Atlanta Association? Some might suggest that Little showed signs of age last year and Buff had his lowest points since the 2014-15 season and his lowest amount of goals since 2012-13.

The defence is in a state of flux with the youth moving in on territory of the vets. With the 4F 1D formation and Laine with the scariest shot in the NHL one has to wonder if Buff becomes more heaving on assists in his point totals. Buff was 5th on the team in primary assists at 5vs5 with 5 down form 9 and 11 the prior two years.

Little was of concern to many last season but is that indicative of what he will be this season? Little had a jump in total 5vs5 shots last season from the previous two seasons but his shooting percentage dropped to a 4 year low at 11.96% It's hard to pinpoint what seemed to hold Little back last season as the numbers suggest it might be a down year based on past results as nothing looks like too obvious an outlier. Regardless the Jets need more from him this season and the five after.

Wheeler had his career year last year and it was phenomenal as he has cemented himself as top 5 RW in the league. His play exploded on the PP and it was where he gained the biggest increase in production. Most would hope he repeats and that would be good enough but with a healthy Scheifele for the season those totals could go up but that would be a tough bet to take. More of the same please is all any reasonable fan should as for.

Can this team stay healthy?

That's what it needs the most for the success of last season to be matched. Certainly the above issues need to happen but having a healthy team is essential to success whether it be goaltending or any other position. The depth of youth that was in abundance within the organization is now playing full time for it and getting paid well taking up cap space. The Jets were 5th in the league for man games lost and survived in spite of that- would they again? Stay healthy and don't lean too hard on guys and this team could be magical but that takes good fortune and that's something all teams wonder if they will get each and every season.

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