Jets getting their Ducks in a row

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This article was published 02/12/2022 (753 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Rick Bowness opted for a “less is more” approach following one of the ugliest games of the season by his hockey team.

“It was shorter, and to the point. Very concise,” the Winnipeg Jets coach said Saturday of the team meeting and video session to go over Friday’s 4-1 loss to Columbus. “We don’t give up those types of goals on the rush. We haven’t given them up all year. We haven’t given up those backdoor plays all year. We take great pride in that. So those things were addressed. Some meetings are a little longer, to go over certain things. But this morning was shorter and right to the point.”

Now the focus turns to how they 14-7-1 club will respond Sunday afternoon when they face a tired, inferior opponent at Canada Life Centre. The Anaheim Ducks come to town with an NHL-worst 6-16-3 record which includes a 5-4 shootout loss on Saturday afternoon in St. Paul against the Minnesota Wild.

“You expect your group to respond. You do. They’re not happy. I’m not happy with that game. You park it and you move on and get ready for Anaheim,” said Bowness. “We set standards to the way we want to play. We have expectations for the way we want to play, regardless of who we’re playing and regardless of the circumstances.”

Connor Hellebuyck gets the start in goal for Winnipeg, his first appearance since a 40-save shutout last Tuesday against the Colorado Avalanche which began this four-game homestand. Backup David Rittich was beaten four times on 26 shots against the Blue Jackets.

“We don’t make excuses. Yeah, Anaheim is playing (back-to-back). It doesn’t matter. It’s all about us,” said Bowness. “It’s about expectations and the standards that we’re setting in place. Are they there right now? No, there’s inconsistencies. We didn’t like the game in Minnesota, then we had three great games and come back with that one (Friday). We’re still working on those standards and expectations. To get there on a much more consistent basis, that’s our challenge right now.”

Based on line rushes at Saturday’s 45-minute practice, it appears forward Axel Jonsson-Fjallby will return to the lineup after being a healthy scratch Friday. Jansen Harkins looks to be the odd man out, joining Dominic Toninato and Kyle Capobianco as the other extras in the press box.

“We’re all in this together, we’re trying to improve. It’s nothing personal when we go through those videos,” veteran forward Sam Gagner said of Saturday’s film study. “It’s just that we’re trying to get better. You understand that and, as a group of players in here, we know we have to respond.”

Jets teams of the past have had a bad habit of often playing down to lesser competition, something they seemed to have bucked early in this new campaign. A 7-2 rout of Chicago last weekend is one example. But falling to a poor, injury-riddled Columbus team will no doubt have some fans thinking it’s a case of “here we go again.”

“I think we understand where we went wrong (Friday) night, with self-inflicted errors that ended up in the back of our net,” said Gagner. “We carried play for a good portion of the game and weren’t able to capitalize on our chances. But I think giving up four goals, especially with the way we gave them up, it’s important for us to fix that and be better (Sunday).”

Bowness was candid following the loss, saying there were “a lot of bad performances from a lot of players in that room.” He didn’t back down a day later.

“So if we have a bad game, like I told them, I’m not afraid to tell you things you don’t want to hear, regardless of the time. Whatever happens, we, as a coaching staff, have to try to stay step ahead of it. That’s the bottom line,” said Bowness.

Gagner said that kind of no-holds-barred communication is appreciated.

“It’s important. You want the truth from your coach and Bones has been great about that all year, understanding where we’re at as a team and how we improve,” he said. “There’s games when you win that there’s a lot of area for improvement, there’s games you lose that you do a lot of great things. Bones has done a great job of keeping us honest in his assessment of how we’re playing. We know where we went wrong last game and we’ve got to rectify it.”

There’s been no shortage of competition up front, with the likes of Gagner, Jonsson-Fjalby, Toninato and Harkins all taking turns coming in and out of the lineup in recent games. Manitoba Moose callup Mikey Eyssimont, who has dressed for the last nine games, has seemingly passed all of them on the depth chart.

There may soon be a similar backlog on the back-end, with Logan Stanley getting closer to a return since breaking a bone in his foot on Oct. 24. He was a full participant in practice Saturday.

“I feel pretty close. I think it’s more the conditioning part of it, just getting back on the ice. Getting the lungs back into it. Other than that, I feel good,” said Stanley. “It’s frustrating. But that’s the game we play, and injuries happen. You gotta deal with them. I think the more frustrating part is I just worked out all summer and then I had to go back in the gym for five more weeks. You want to be out there helping the guys win. It is what it is, injuries are going to happen. You just have to deal with it the best that you can.”

Stanley got hurt while blocking a shot on the penalty kill and plans to wear some extra padding going forward.

“Part of the reason I’m in the league is to block shots on the penalty kill. I won’t stop doing that for sure. It’s something the team needs me to do. And I’m more than willing to do it,” he said.

Stanley’s presence is looming large, and it’s not just because of his 6-7 frame. Activating him from the injured reserve list will prompt a related roster move to stay at the 23-player maximum.

“We’re a deep team and we’ve got a lot of good hockey players in here. Friendly competition is good. It pushes guys to be at their best every day. That’s what you want,” said Stanley. “You don’t want a stale locker room and the same 23 guys playing every night. There’s going to be some interchangeable pieces. And that’s going to help push guys in practice and in games to get better every day.”

mike.mcintyre@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @mikemcintyrewpg