Preparing for Take-Off

WINNIPEG JETS

2012-13 record: 24-21-3 (51 points)
Missed the playoffs
Captain: Andrew Ladd

The Winnipeg Jets continue to preach patience, even in the face of a playoff drought that dates back to 2008, when the franchise was based in Atlanta.  This season figures to be the same, though this time, their top two prospects appear to be ready to join the team.  Offensively, the line of Bryan Little, Andrew Ladd, and Blake Wheeler accounted for much of the team's production, with only Evander Kane and Dustin Byfuglien being the others to go over the 20 point mark.  Devin Setoguchi was brought in to be on a line with Kane, and they could see 2011 first round pick Mark Schiefele as their center.  He would be a welcome improvement over Olli Jokinen, who hasn't produced since his Florida days.  The bottom two lines will be mostly role players, with Michael Frolik having a prominent role in that area.  The blue line is full of potential, but it must do better than tied for 24th on defense.  Zach Bogosian's time to become a number one defenseman is now, Byfuglien needs to continue to be better in his own end, and Tobias Enstrom actually just needs to stay healthy.  An important player to watch here is Jacob Trouba, who is likely to make the jump to the NHL after just one year in Michigan.  Goaltending was a sore spot last season, and it will remain so for the foreseeable future.  Ondrej Pavelec can be great at times, but he also gives up an alarming amount of goals at times, as well.  His backup Al Montoya isn't much better.

Prospects:  Schiefele and Trouba are as close to a shoo-in as you can get as far as prospects that can make the NHL roster.  The one other player that could make the jump is Zach Redmond, who can still make the roster provided that he's completely healed from a leg cut during his rookie year.  Because goaltending depth isn't very good, it appears imminent that Edward Pasquale's time could be coming soon.  Whether or not Pavelec should be sweating over his job remains to be seen.

Prediction: 6th in the Central Division

The Jets will finally have a travel friendly schedule with the new alignment.  However, their new rivals won't be as forgiving, as they have to play against Chicago, St. Louis, and Minnesota at least six times a year, and with a shaky defense and special teams that need lots of help, expecting the Jets to break the playoff drought will be unrealistic at this point.