The Winnipeg Jets are through 25 games of the 2023-24 season, and as such, there are tons of stats to dive into. Here, we’ll take a look at 25 notable numbers — for individual players and for the team as a whole.
32: Number of Points
The Jets have 32 points and sit third in the Central Division and two points out of first. They are 15-8-2, which is actually slightly behind a season ago. Through 25 games in 2022-23, they racked up 35 points with a scorching 17-7-1 start.
17, 28: Goals And Points For Kyle Connor, Both Team Leads
Kyle Connor has potted 17 goals and is on pace to be the first 50-goal scorer in Jets 2.0 history. He also has 11 assists to lead the Jets with 28 points, one ahead of Mark Scheifele.
Connor, tied for second in the NHL in goals, has left his subpar (by his standards) 2022-23 behind. He scored 32 that season but suffered some uncharacteristic dry spells.
This season, it has been a marvel to watch the 26-year-old generate so many first-rate chances from so many different locations, even when there seems to be no time or space to do anything.
19: Points for Cole Perfetti
The huge improvements Cole Perfetti has made have been on full display.
Related: Jets’ Top 3 Performers From November, 2023
Perfetti, in his third NHL season, has already set a career high in goals with nine and sits fourth on the team with 19 points. He has been dangerous and produced consistently in a top-six role — mainly on the wing before recently being moved back to centre — and most crucially has stayed healthy. He has recorded at least a point in 17 of 25 games.
As the above player card from The Athletic shows, the 21-year-old is the Jets’ top player in surplus value, providing $5.7 million in surplus value from his $800,000 salary. If he keeps up his current level of production, he will not only keep helping the Jets win games, but will be in a good position for a major raise this summer when he negotiates a new contract as a restricted free agent.
60 per cent: Perfetti’s Corsi For, a Team Lead
The Jets’ highest Corsi For Percentage — which measures how often a player or team possesses the puck — also goes to Perfetti, who has established that he’s a play driver who aids in sustaining offensive attack and doesn’t allow a lot of chances against. He’s not just someone who feasts offensively but too often is chasing the puck and allowing the opponent to have possession and offensive zone time.
Perfetti’s Corsi For at all strengths is 60.00, which is nearing the elite category. Anything above 50 per cent is considered good (as above 50 per cent shows a team has the puck more often than not when a player is on the ice.)
22: Points for Josh Morrissey
Josh Morrissey has not regressed at all from last season, when he put the league on notice by recording an eye-popping 76-points. The blue liner, who has evolved into an elite two-way defenseman, has already recorded 22 points (five goals, 17 assists) and is on pace for 72.6 points.
Morrissey is also plus-nine and is logging an average of 24:28 of ice time per game, a career high. His immense talent could result in a Norris Trophy nomination at the end of the season (fans have already taken to calling “Josh Norrissey.”)
.914, 2.47, 6.0: Connor Hellebuyck’s Save Percentage, Goals Against Average, and Goals Saved Above Average
Connor Hellebuyck has rebounded after a rough start to the season and his numbers are now nearing ones expected of a Vezina winner.
After giving up 13 goals in his first three starts — which made his numbers look nightmarish for a while after — Hellebuyck locked things down and got back to his “big and boring” ways. Through 19 starts, his SV% is up to .914, his GAA is down to 2.47, and his GSAA is back on the positive side at 6.0.
The 30-year-old, who signed a lucrative seven-year extension alongside Scheifele in September, sports a 12-6-1 record and has allowed three or fewer goals in 10-straight starts after allowing four-plus in four of his first eight.
6: Starts for Laurent Brossoit
If the Jets want to not overwork Hellebuyck — which they have done egregiously in seasons past — and keep him fresh for the stretch run and potential playoffs, they need to give him regular rest.
Backup goaltender Laurent Brossoit — who is out to prove to the rest of the league he’s capable of being a number-one goalie — has started six games, or 24 per cent of the time.
Brossoit has looked shaky and like he’s fighting the puck a bit at times, but his numbers — a 3-2-1 record, .903 SV%, and 2.65 GAA — are alright. The 30-year-old’s most recent start, on Dec. 4 against the Carolina Hurricanes, was his best by far as he willed his team to a 2-1 victory by stopping 41 of 42 shots that came his way.
If head coach Rick Bowness is serious about managing Hellebuyck’s workload properly, he’ll give Brossoit at least 18-20 more starts through the end of the season.
15: Straight Games Allowing 3 or Fewer Goals
The Jets’ stout defensive structure and stinginess have been on display since their first 10 games — they’ve gone 15-straight games without allowing more than three goals.
Hellebuyck and Brossoit’s play — combined with the team’s defensive details being much sharper than in seasons past —have helped the Jets give up just 32 goals in that stretch (a paltry 2.13 per game) and post an 11-4-0 record.
5: Healthy Scratches For Nate Schmidt
Nate Schmidt is the Jets’ second-highest paid defenseman at $5.95 million, but the near $6-million-dollar-man has already been parked in the press box five times this season.
Schmidt, a veteran whose play has gone downhill, has seen himself in a battle for playing time on a crowded blue line. Declan Chisholm and Logan Stanley, much younger players, have taken his third-pairing spot at times.
Related: Winnipeg Jets Need to Consider Dealing Nate Schmidt
The Jets have even gone with an 11 forward/seven defenseman configuration on occasion. On Dec. 4, the last time they did so, Schmidt — who has just one assist in 20 games and is a minus-four —was the odd man out.
18.75: Power Play Percentage
The Jets power play sits middle-of-the-road league wise, 18th in the league at an 18.75 per cent (15/80) efficiency.
The power play got off to an abysmal start — just 3/34 through the end of October — and it’s been a long road back to respectability. Both units still sometimes struggles to generate chances and offensive zone time but have looked better the start of November — they have 11 goals in 46 opportunities (a 32.91 per cent efficiency) in 16 games since Nov. 1.
76.32: Penalty Kill Percentage
The Jet’ penalty kill has also fought to get back to respectability after a similarly atrocious start.
Entering November, the penalty killing regime was operating at just 71.88 per cent efficiency, 29th in the league. Now, it’s 22nd in the league with a 76.32 per cent efficiency.
The PK personnel lost a few key members from last season — when they killed off 82.43 per cent efficiency to finish seventh-best in the league — but has begun to look more comfortable. They have posted nine clean sheets in 16 games since Nov. 1.
76: Times Shorthanded
As penalty-killing is not their biggest strength, it’s a good thing the Jets have not cut ruts to the sin bin too often.
They have been shorthanded 76 times, which is in the bottom-10 in the league. They have been shorthanded three or fewer times in 16 of 25 games.
7: Wins in 10 Games Against Central Division Opponents
The Jets have been fairly successful at snagging wins in the so-called “four point” games that matter the most in the standings.
They have seven victories against fellow Central Division squads in 10 games. They have beaten the Arizona Coyotes twice, the Chicago Blackhawks once, the Colorado Avalanche once, the Nashville Predators once, and the St. Louis Blues twice. They have lost to the Avalanche once and Dallas Stars twice.
The Jets had great success against the Central Division last season. In 2022-23, their 18-8-0 record against Divisional foes was the main reason they snuck into the playoffs in the second Western Conference wild-card spot despite profound second-half struggles.
7: Wins in 9 Games Against Eastern Conference Opponents
Play the east, young men: the Jets have done well out of their Conference, winning seven out of nine contests against Eastern Conference opponents and never losing in regulation.
They have defeated the Buffalo Sabres, Carolina Hurricanes, Detroit Red Wings, Florida Panthers twice, New Jersey Devils ,and Tampa Bay Lightning. They lost to the Montreal Canadiens in a shootout and the New York Rangers in overtime.
1: Win in 6 Games Against Pacific Division Opponents
While the Jets have been successful against the east and within their own Division, they have struggled against the Pacific Division. They are just 1-5-0 against Pacific opponents, with the only win coming against the Edmonton Oilers on Oct. 21 when the Oilers were playing terribly. The Jets have lost to the Oilers, Calgary Flames, Los Angeles Kings, and the Vegas Golden Knights twice.
The Jets will have a chance to improve their record on a three-game Pacific swing beginning Dec. 10 that sees them face rebuilding clubs in the Anaheim Ducks and San Jose Sharks before another crack at the Kings.
76.92: Points Percentage with Scott Arniel As Acting Head Coach
Bowness stepped away from the Jets on Oct. 23 after his wife Judy suffered a seizure. Associate coach Scott Arniel stepped into the head coaching role amidst uncertainty as to when Bowness would return.
Related: Jets’ Bowness Excited to Return to The Bench, Praises Arniel
Arniel was able to keep the Jets soaring — they were getting balanced scoring from throughout their lineup and excelling at five-on-five — despite their well-respected bench boss’ leave of absence. Arniel coached them to a 9-2-2 record before Bowness returned ahead of the game on Nov. 24 after Judy’s health improved.
Bowness said he and Arniel talked every day and he watched every game to send Arniel his comments, but complimented Arniel and the entire Jets’ coaching staff for taking the reins.
“Our coaches did a fantastic job, they really did,” Bowness said. “They kept this team very very well prepared, everything we put into place during training camp they were staying on top of those details… they’ve done a fantastic job, as have our players. This is not an easy thing for them as well, so I give our players an awful lot of credit for staying dialled in and focused and playing as well as they have.”
Rick Bowness
0: Wins When Trailing After Two Periods
The Jets have entered the third period trailing seven times, and have not only not yet orchestrated a comeback win, but have never even gotten a point in that situation. They are 0-7-0 when trailing after two.
Last season, they were 4-23-0 when trailing after two.
Plus-28: The Third Line’s Combined Plus/Minus
Line combinations come and go throughout the season but one that’s not been messed with much is the third line of Nino Niederreiter, Adam Lowry, and Mason Appleton.
The line has been exceptional at five-on-five and sport a combined plus-29 rating (Niederreiter is plus-11, Lowry is plus-9, and Appleton is plus-8) thanks to their ability to generate secondary offence while giving up minimal chances to opponents.
14: Times the Jets Have Scored First
The Jets’ first periods have been lower-event than their seconds or thirds as they’ve scored fewer and allowed fewer goals in the first than the other frames.
However, the Jets have managed to fire the game’s opening salvo more often than not: 14 of 25 times (56 per cent.)
Scoring first is a good foundation for a win as the Jets are 11-2-1 when doing so. Last season, they scored first 43 times (52.43 per cent) and were 31-10-2 record in those games.
17: Goals Allowed in the First Period
As mentioned above, the Jets have been comfortable playing tight early and focusing on being stingy on defense out of the gate, knowing they can push for offence after establishing their D.
The Jets have allowed just 17 goals in first periods, compared to 30 in the second, 29 in the third, and two in overtime.
12,120: The Average Attendance at Canada Life Centre
The thousands of empty seats at Canada Life Centre each game remains a big story considering True North Sports & Entertainment (TNSE) sold out 332-consecutive home games between the inaugural 2011-12 season and October, 2019.
The average attendance has jumped slightly from earlier in the season — to 12,120 through 14 home games — thanks to some high-profile opponents in the Oilers’ Connor McDavid and the Blackhawks’ Connor Bedard coming to town.
However, 12,120 is only 79.10 per cent of the 15,321 capacity and is the lowest average for any team other than the Coyotes, who play in a 5,000-seat college rink. The Jets have yet to sell out a game — the highest was 14,189 when the 18-year-old phenom Bedard was playing in Winnipeg for the first time as a professional — and games in October against the Kings and Blues were the two lowest-attended in Jets 2.0 history (not including games played in front of limited crowds due to COVID-19 capacity restrictions) at 11,226 and 11,136.
However, in a 20-minute interview with TSN’s Darren Dreger in late October, TNSE executive chairman Mark Chipman posed the issue as a challenge to overcome, not an existential threat.
Chipman cited the COVID-19 pandemic, current economy, and low number of business/corporate ticket holders as factors, but promised there’s no chance the team will relocate and outlined what TNSE is doing to earn their customer base back.
Related: Jets’ Chipman Confident in Winnipeg and Better Future Attendance
“I can see how you would ask that question because it happened once,” Chipman said to Dreger’s question about the potential threat of a sale. “Is it a concern it could happen again because it’s the smallest market? I say not on our watch. We’ve been doing this far too long – we got into this for the very reason of that heartbreak you described. It was that very emotion that brought us into this, that kept us in the fight, to get a building built and then to acquire a team again.”
“And then to have 10 years of sellouts and then two years of challenge brought on by a global pandemic? It would be a little extreme for us to say, ‘Oh gee, we’re not sure this works anymore,’” he continued. “That would be far less than savvy – that would be really un-savvy.”
Mark Chipman
57: Games Still To Go
As much there’s been to make of the Jets’ season so far both good and bad, they still have 57 games — 70 per cent of their schedule — to go.
As strong as a lot of aspects of the team’s game has been, and as tight-knit as they look now, some skepticism should be held until they prove they have the strength of character to work hard and pull in the same direction for an entire season. We know all about the drastic second-half downturn last season that saw the Jets tumble from first in the Central to barely making the playoffs.
