Note: The Jets were busy on Wednesday holding an optional practice which saw David Gustafsson, in a yellow non-contact jersey, skating with the team for the first time. The team is scheduled to practice today at 11 AM before they take off for Dallas where they will face the Stars on Friday night. Be sure to get the full 411 via the Jets Practice Report.
Note II: Jets GM Kevin Cheveldayoff held his midseason media availability yesterday which you can watch in full here.
Note III: The Moose gave up a pair of goals in the opening period and while they cut the Stars lead in half as time elapsed in the final frame they were unable to complete the comeback and Texas sealed the deal with an empty net goal. The team travels today to Abbotsford where they will play for the first time ever when they take on the Canucks tomorrow night.
Jets news:
Global News: Jets looking to change the narrative. No question the only way they are gonna be able to do that is with a win. And for the position they are currently in they will need to string together a series of wins in order to put themselves back into the conversation.
Sportsnet: Cheveldayoff confident in Jets core, patient ahead of trade deadline. In his last media address (after Paul Maurice resigned) it was clear he was putting the players on notice that it would fall on them but he is also savvy enough to not play that card again in the media.
Winnipeg Sun: Practices coming to a halt as schedule picks up; Heinola gaining trust. Scott touches on a number of topics in this piece including the reality with so many games between now and the end of the season practices will soon be few and far between. He also wrote about injured guys coming on the road trip and the Jets 2019 1st rounder becoming more comfortable at the NHL level.
Winnipeg Sun: GM Cheveldayoff knows Jets need to find a way. As I’ve been saying for awhile this team has dug themselves a big hole and with the way they are up against the cap it will likely be on them to dig themselves out of it.
The Athletic Winnipeg: GM Kevin Cheveldayoff speaks: Trade deadline plans, coach evaluation, prospect pipeline and more. (Paywall). These chats are usually quite long so Murat bears down on some of the most interesting tidbits from the availability.
Winnipeg Free Press: Too early to speculate on deadline deals, says Jets GM. (Paywall). The trade deadline isn’t until March 21st so there is still a long way to go before that talk really starts to get going.
Winnipeg Free Press: Chevedayoff addresses state of struggling Jets, affirms faith in team he assembled. (Paywall). Mike recaps the greatest hits from yesterday’s media availability with the GM.
Global News: Jets GM Kevin Cheveldayoff says focus is on making a playoff push. Gonna take all guys wearing Jets jerseys to start pulling in the same direction each and every night.
Jets video:
Sportsnet: How Cheveldayoff made it clear he’s not giving up on Jets playoff chances yet. Sean Reynolds and Ken Wiebe give their takeaways from Kevin Cheveldayoff’s midseason press conference, where the Jets GM made it clear he’s not about to give up on this team and their playoff chances.
TSN: ‘Too premature’ to determine if Jets are sellers ahead of trade deadline. Kevin Cheveldayoff believes it’s still “premature” for Winnipeg to start thinking themselves as sellers ahead of next month’s trade deadline. The Jets’ GM says he is looking for hockey deals at the trade deadline, and that the focus is on now.
TSN: Cheveldayoff discusses trade deadline, Dubois contract, Ehlers recovery. Jets GM Kevin Cheveldayoff held his midseason media availability and discussed a number of topics, including the team not ready to be sellers just yet ahead of the NHL trade deadline, the contract statuses of Paul Stastny, Andrew Copp, Nathan Beaulieu and Pierre-Luc Dubois, the timeline for Nikolaj Ehlers’ return, and more.
Moose news:
Full Press Hockey: Tight-Knit Roster, Head Coach Helping Manitoba Succeed Amidst Adversity. This is as close a team as I’ve ever covered and while not the most talented Moose team since they came back to Winnipeg this club has what it takes to challenge for a Calder Cup.
Moose video:
MooseTV: Moose assistant coach Marty Johnston on his being behind the bench for his first ever NHL game. Quite an experience for the longtime AHL assistant.