Winnipeg’s season may have taken off again. The Jets’ pilots felt like they were on the training grounds as goals came easily for them in their 6-2 win over the Vancouver Canucks. The Canucks have now lost 14 of their last 15 games and fell to 3-14-1 on the season with the loss, as their historically horrid pace continues.

Game Stories: Willander and Schenn Out Again, Meriläinen Returns, Poor Effort

Tom Willander did not dress for a second straight game due to injury, while Luke Schenn was healthy-scratched for the fourth time in the last five games. While Schenn’s veteran leadership may be valuable, Head Coach Manny Malhotra clearly is prioritizing giving Victor Mancini more NHL action, which makes sense in a rebuild. You do have to wonder, though, does Schenn still have it in him to play at an NHL level?

It was also a rough game for Leevi Meriläinen, whose numbers have slowly dipped over his last few games. He stopped 23 of 29 shots this game and some of the goals he would likely want back. The goaltending picture may get more complex if Meriläinen now starts to struggle as well. However, given his solid play earlier in the season, his leash remains longer than Lankinen’s.

Filip Hronek had yet another tough night, with a -4 in his 25:42 of ice time. Constantly puck-watching and getting dangled on is something uncharacteristic of who is supposed to be the top defender on the team. His -13 plus/minus stat is now the worst on the team. HockeyStatCards seemed to agree with that assessment.

The head coach was understandably critical of the game tonight. “Again, it came down to a lack of execution in certain areas. Ultimately, it was a lack of effort and compete in certain compartments,” Malhotra commented after the game. It is one thing for a rebuilding squad to struggle to score, but one of the biggest red flags is a limp and effortless hockey team. In a year where home attendance is already low, poor efforts may drive attendance even lower. Things seemed to be looking better as of late, but this game was a major setback in the process.

The Game Felt Over Before It Even Began

Two goals in 14 seconds sunk the Canucks early, as Alex Iafallo tipped one home on the power play to open the scoring. Cole Koepke then put the puck in front of the net, and a lucky bounce made it 2-0 Jets roughly four minutes into the first.

Liam Öhgren then responded with a quick snap shot that fooled Stuart Skinner to cut the lead to 2-1 on the first shot of the game for Vancouver. That is three goals in the last four games for him. The healthy scratch earlier this season may have been the best thing for him. A much-needed point for Marco Rossi as well, as he only had two points in the last 13 games.

Dawson Mercer, a key piece of the Connor Hellebuyck trade, scored his first as a Jet as once again, the slot was open for business. The low-to-high pass has been something that the Canucks have struggled to defend as of late. 3-1 Jets.

Second Period, Same Old Mistakes

Neal Pionk made it 4-1 for the Jets as he put home the rebound off a Kyle Connor backhand shot. Again, way too easy for the Jets as they continued to have free rein at the front of the net.

Mark Scheifele kept it rolling as the Canucks once again were caught out of position after a turnover by Jake DeBrusk. Viggo Bjorck, the Winnipeg rookie, got his first career NHL point in his 17th game.

The Blender Happens in the Third Period

Manny Malhotra had clearly seen enough, as the forward lines were put into a blender in the third period in an attempt to garner better results. The lines looked as follows:

Cotter-Pettersson-Boeser DeBrusk-Quillan-Lekkerimäki O’Connor-Rossi-Gallagher Öhgren-Sasson-Karlsson

Mario Ferraro put some more icing on the cake as he made it 6-1 off a wrist shot from the right circle. Simple as that.

With 4:51 left, Brock Boeser scored as he went to the net on the backhand. Props to Jacob Quillan, who got his first assist as a Canuck, for his strong work on the boards, setting up Boeser. Quillan may have earned a spot on the NHL roster with plays like that.

The Canucks would not get any closer than that, as the Jets took this game with ease, by a score of 6-2.

Stats & Game Flow

The first graph from NaturalStatTrick.com is the shot attempt advantage. The second is the expected goals advantage. While the shots were relatively close in the end, this game was not close in the slightest, as the Jets bore down and made the most of every great chance, suffocating the Canucks throughout the game. The expected goals, according to MoneyPuck, were 3.49-1.65 in favour of Winnipeg.

Looking Ahead to the Next Game

The Canucks will face off against the Edmonton Oilers on Saturday at 8:00 p.m. Pacific Time (PCT). You can catch that game on Sportsnet.