You’ve clinched a playoff spot! You’ve secured your seed. It’s the most exciting time of a team’s season with a chance to play for the Stanley Cup.
A team in this scenario set to enter its final game of the regular season will use the opportunity to rest its stars and allow any small nagging injuries time to breathe.
This should be the scenario for the Winnipeg Jets entering their final outing Friday against Toronto, but recent play may dictate another direction.
With just two wins in the last 10 games, the Jets need to build confidence heading into the post-season. To do this, the team must win.
Which means the Jets’ ability to rest the team’s tops players in Scheifele, Lowry, Connor, Copp, Pionk, etc. may not be an option.
The Jets need this final 60 minutes of the regular season to re-establish the team identity.
The outing against Toronto is not a throwaway for Winnipeg.
The team needs to find its secondary scoring, to create offence on the power play, to gain confidence and, most importantly, win the game and end the season on a high.
All of this is key for the Jets to stay in the fight, and a fight it will be against Connor McDavid and the Edmonton Oilers in the playoffs.
The nine-game season series between the two teams saw Edmonton skate away with seven wins and just two losses to the Jets.
That being said, none of it matters if the Jets win the playoff series. All will be forgotten. That’s why the playoffs are magical.
But in order to enter the playoffs on the right note, it all starts with a strong finale to the regular season on Friday.
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