During Thursday’s game for the Jets, Captain Blake Wheeler took a shot off the body that stung him. He did remain and finished the rest of the game. However, we learned Saturday morning that Wheeler would be missing the next month of the season after having to have groin surgery.
Wheeler is currently in his 15th NHL season; after plenty of offseason drama for Wheeler and the Jets, he has managed to start strong. Now sitting at 26 points in 29 games, Wheeler was on pace to match point totals from his 2018-19 campaign.
From a team perspective, Winnipeg sits second in the Central Division. Expectations were at an all-time low heading into this season. Paul Maurice had left the Jets, Wheeler was stripped of the “C,” and Rick Bowness was brought in to calm things down. While the roster looked great on paper, there seemed to be too much noise for any success. An extended injury from one of their best players could cause them to slip in the standings. After all, the Avalanche are sitting in a Wild Card position, which is bound to change as they get healthy as well.
