The Winnipeg Jets have begun the 2024-25 season with a strong winning consistency. In the teams’ first 12 games, they boast a win-loss record of 11-1-0 and sit alone for first in the entire league. Fans are reasonable to be skeptical of this team, and the team has a lot of work to do to give fans ease of mind.
It’s simple: This team won’t quit, and head coach Scott Arniel has the entire team dialled into what he has to say and the style of hockey he wants them to play. However, there are more layers than just that one simple sentence contributing to the Winnipeg Jets’ early-season successes. Let’s dive into just some of what is going according to plan for the Winnipeg Jets.
Effective Transitioning & Player Formation
At 5-on-5, the Winnipeg Jets have been one of the best teams at transitioning between zones. This has been a strong part of their game even when Paul Maurice was the head coach of the team, but there’s a sense of identity for the team on how fast they can change the game with an effective transition.
Leading into the goal where Kyle Connor gets an assist to extend his franchise-record season-opening point streak, you can observe a seemingly harmless play unfold. Tampa Bay has four defenders in a broken 3-1 formation whereas Winnipeg has a 2-1 formation entering the offensive zone.
Gabriel Vilardi, who is open on the right wing entering the zone, crashes the net in an attempt to score cross-crease on Jonas Johansson. Tampa Bay drew too many defenders toward the middle of the ice which allowed Kyle Connor to float on the left-side perimeter and Mark Scheifele to reside in a triangle of Tampa defenders
Once Connor has the puck again, Dylan Samberg is the open man where the Jets use an aggressive 2-1-2 style against Tampa’s 2-3 formation. Nicholas Paul would follow Connor behind the net and Ryan McDonagh would pressure Connor as well which pulled Tampa’s defenders out of position. Connor passed the puck to Samberg who had a clean shooting lane on Johansson.
The Jets aggressively spread a 2-1-2 formation from the defensive zone to pushing the offensive zone awaiting the pass to Scheifele. This was one of the most effective transitions against Tampa that gave Winnipeg the edge they needed to get themselves into a winning position.
Puck Possession, Interception & Breaking Up Passing Lanes
Intercepting pucks is one thing, but breaking up passing lanes and reading where other players are going to pass is a big thing if you want to minimize how teams choose to play against you.
The best example of Winnipeg’s puck interception is Neal Pionk against the Pittsburgh Penguins. The Jets use a 2-1-2 formation with the first three guys in the neutral zone against the Penguins offensive 2-3, where this went wrong for Pittsburgh was the breakout pass to the middle man that was read and intercepted by Neal Pionk.
This exact play led to a 4-on-2 breakout for the Winnipeg Jets which resulted in a goal for Winnipeg and them extending their lead to 5-3.
Winnipeg is also really strong at playing aggressively in the defensive zone which has helped them escape with overtime wins. The biggest asset the Jets have in the defensive zone is there is always at minimum one moving body at all times.
While that sounds silly, the Jets always have a player ready to move in and regain puck possession when their opponents are applying pressure. They play the game within the game behind their net if the puck is tied up on the boards. Two Jets defenders are typically tied up along the boards against two opposing players whereas the free Jets player lurks from the top of the circle in case the puck breaks loose. Nine times out of 10 this season, Winnipeg typically has come out of this scenario with puck possession.
The Jets spring into action with a 2-1-2 aggressive offensive formation which typically leads into an odd-man rush scenario and goals. Having mobile, puck-moving defensemen like Neal Pionk and Josh Morrissey, the Jets have aware defenders who don’t hesitate to jump up in on the rush and help the team get the upper hand on the attack.
Special Teams
One of the biggest layers on the strategy onion that is hockey that we have to peel back is special teams, and the Winnipeg Jets have executed special teams with excellence. Across Winnipeg’s first 12 games, they have managed a power play percentage of 44.1% and a penalty kill of 76%. While the power play is due to regress and the penalty kill could improve, these numbers are already a significant upgrade from their 2023-24 numbers.
The Winnipeg Jets do not like to shoot anywhere near the point when they are on the power play. They will take longer shots if they need to but will choose to drive the puck as close as possible to the net and it’s proven successful so far.
The Jets’ biggest flaw in the 2023-24 season was the lack of aggressiveness on the power play, and as previously mentioned, they floated along the perimeter looking for the best pass possible which caused such low numbers.
This season, the Jets have taken a similar approach to their penalty killing, but their power play was given a facelift as it’s a complete 180 from what we’re used to seeing. The penalty kill plays in the quadrant system, each player tries to man a specific quarter of the defensive zone while keeping the opposing team at bay. The Jets, who seem to love the aggressive 2-1-2 formation in many aspects of the game, run a rotating 2-1-2 on the powerplay. The players on the outsides will rotate around to control puck possession, but the lone player in the middle usually stays the same.
When the Jets scored their lone power-play goal against the Tampa Bay Lightning, they went from playing the perimeter to an aggressive 2-1-2 formation as I mentioned before. Pionk anchors the blueline while Cole Perfetti remains free on the right side, Vladislav Namestnikov is on the left wall with two Tampa defenders covering him and Nino Niederreiter positions himself behind the net.
Alex Iafallo, the puck carrier at the blue line, dumps the puck deeper into the zone which is touched by Niederreiter and passed up to Cole Perfetti manages to position himself in between the hash marks where he is in the middle of all four Tampa penalty killers.
All four Tampa defenders are out of their quadrants as Hedman pressures Niederreiter behind the net and opens space for Iafallo to score on the power play. Regardless of the Jets being on the penalty kill or the power play, they’ve managed to create a successful system that pulls defenders off the puck and opens space for Winnipeg’s attackers.
Scott Arniel will likely take the majority of the credit for the teams’ early successes, but Dean Chynoweth is responsible for the Jets’ penalty kill and defensive structure while Davis Payne is responsible for the Jets’ power play and forward structure.
Their ability to execute when the time calls is flawless and it’s to be attributed to the depth the team possesses, which leads me to my next point.
Top Players & Depth Pieces Contributing Equally
Being a top-heavy team doesn’t win games in the NHL, going through adversity as a team and utilizing your depth wins games, especially in the playoffs. While the Winnipeg Jets have crashed and burned in the previous two playoffs, this year could be a whole different tune.
Winning your first 11 of 12 games doesn’t happen often, if ever. The Jets are first with 4.9 goals per game on average and third with 2.5 goals allowed per game. While the teams’ successes can be attributed to their power play success, the main key to all of this is the overall effort of the entire team.
At the time of writing, Kyle Connor leads the team with 19 points (9G, 10A) in 12 games during his franchise-record season-opening point streak. Nikolaj Ehlers just passed Frans Nielsen for all-time points by a Danish player and he’s second in team scoring with 17 points (8G, 9A) in 12 games. The list is long with this team, and seeing players like Neal Pionk with 13 points (3G, 10A), Nino Niederreiter with 10 points (5G, 5A) and Colin Miller with six points (2G, 4A) is an encouraging step.
Combine this with the steady goaltending you’ve received from Connor Hellebuyck with a 2.33 goals against average (GAA) and a .917 save percentage (SV%) across his nine-game run where he’s posted a win-loss record of 8-1-0. Eric Comrie has been steady as well, posting a 3-0 win-loss record in three games/starts, a 2.67 GAA and a .914 SV% since returning to Winnipeg.
Finally, Rasmus Kupari, acquired in the Pierre-Luc Dubois trade, recorded his first points as a Winnipeg Jet in the early stretch of the 2024-25 season which has helped his stock tremendously, but the team’s overall run.
Final Thoughts
It goes without saying that the Winnipeg Jets are firing on all cylinders right now. They’ve won 11 of their first 12 games and are showing no signs of slowing down. Even when facing adversity in games, they claw back to win the game or barely lose the game.
During the 2023-24 season, the Jets opened their first 12 games with a 6-4-2 win-loss record. A .500 winning percentage compared to a winning percentage this year just over .900% is an improvement, but is due for a regression.
With the Winnipeg Jets ready to face the Utah Hockey Club for the first time since Utah was relocated, will they keep up their winning ways? Only time will tell.
