The Winnipeg Jets and Bringing the Stanley Cup back to Canada
The Winnipeg Jets are coming off the heels of a wonderful season, and have a lot of playoff hockey to look forward to. But anything could happen, and if we just want the Stanley Cup back where it belongs, who can do it?
The Winnipeg Jets came as close to any Canadian team in the recent past to winning a cup. The Ottawa Senators did face the Penguins in the Eastern Conference Final last year back, but they looked about as overmatched as that sounds in 2018.
The Toronto Maple Leafs have reached the playoffs two years in a row, but haven’t made it out of the first round either time. Winnipeg and Toronto were the only Canadian teams to make the tournament this year. Five made it the prior year (Montreal, Ottawa, Toronto, Calgary and Edmonton).
But, regardless of Winnipeg Jets fandom, we’ve decided the Stanley Cup needs to come back to Canada after a quarter century break. Yes, there are only seven Canadian teams. But still, it’s time. Twenty-five years of watching the Cup suffer in South Canada is enough.
So let’s figure out which of these seven teams will be the most likely to accomplish the feat. It has to be done eventually, right? We begin by eliminating the teams that are more than unlikely to do it. Two come to mind: The Montreal Canadiens and Vancouver Canucks.
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Montreal has a mediocre roster that’s been pushed toward the playoffs in the past by the ridiculous play of their netminder, Carey Price, who faltered this season. He’s always been injury prone and he could be facing an early decline. The team simply relies on him too much to be competitive.
Vancouver? What a shame. But they were an awful team and now two of their top three scorers, Henrik and Daniel Sedin, are both retiring. Brock Boeser and Bo Horvat are cool, but they’re not a Cup-Winning core.
That puts our best odds on four teams, but two are unlikely to garner immediate consideration. Ottawa and Calgary made the playoffs last season, but suffered through tough years. As did Edmonton, but they have hope.
Craig Anderson was a revelation for Ottawa in their ECF season. He was brutally terrible last year. The rest of the team looked roughly the same, but his poor play sunk them. They went from 98 to 67 points and traded away Derick Brassard. If Erik Karlsson departs in free agency after next season (or they trade him), the team may have to rebuild.
Calgary has Johnny Gaudreau and Sean Monahan, but the latter was the only one to cross the thirty goal threshold. And the team as a whole 26th in scoring, so they really need a bit more punch. Their defense is strong and somehow Mike Smith was a decent goaltender this year. They’re just not quite there. Also, I don’t know if I would count on Smith in the future.
That leaves us with three legitimate contenders. Well, two and a hopeful. The Edmonton Oilers must not be forgotten, though I know they only had 78 points this year. Having Connor McDavid just elevates the ceiling for the Cleveland Browns of the NHL (sorry Buffalo fans), but the rest of their roster was slightly disappointing.
But we’ve seen how good that team could be, and you can’t count out a team with Connor McDavid. Also, I’m shamelessly in love with the talent of Cam Talbot, who I believe is much better than he showed. We’ll see. Maybe Talbot is who he was this season, and you can’t win without a goalie.
Make no mistake, the Winnipeg Jets and Toronto Maple Leafs are Canada’s best chance of bringing the Stanley Cup home. And thank the Good Lord, too, since nobody wanted it to be Montreal.
Toronto has three legit top six centers, and the oldest one is 21 years old. Auston Matthews struggled with an injury, but he’s every bit as good as his Calder Trophy and #1 draft pick status imply. Mitch Marner and William Nylander are stars in their own right.
Mike Babcock may be as likable as Ulf Samuelsson, but he’s a damn fine coach. This team can score. Actually, they had as many goals as the Winnipeg Jets last season, good for second in the league. Their defense was solid. With just a bit of growth from their youngsters (and better injury luck from Matthews), there’s no reason this team can’t make a leap.
Remember, they pushed the Washington Capitals to six games in the first round last year. That’s no small feat for a couple of teenagers leading the charge. Look for this team to contend, no doubt, for a few years to come.
And that brings us to our number one contender: Your Winnipeg Jets. Patrik Laine is your top-tier sniper, your goaltender is under 25 and just got nominated for a Vezina in his first full season, your top four defenseman are young, big, or Dustin Byfuglien. The man who brings Cup experience and downright terror.
Mark Scheifele is a proven playoff hero, and he’s the team’s third best forward. Blake Wheeler just had a career year and is only 31. A 21 year old just broke 30 goals (Kyle Connor), and you have another 21 year old trying to break in, Jack Roslovic. The talent is there, the depth is there.
The replacements for the depth pieces are even there. Dustin Byfuglien is your oldest key contributor and he’s just 32. And they proved they can stomach missing him for some time.
This team is one of the five best teams in the league, and I see no reason why that can’t continue. Will it? Probably, but things happen. Sometimes teams just fall apart. But I wouldn’t bet on it.
Next: What Went Right for Winnipeg?
In fact, I would bet on seeing one of those two, Toronto or Winnipeg, in the Finals fairly soon. By 2020, even. Hell, maybe they’ll even play each other. Bring the Mug Home 2020™.