He was the best pure shutdown defenceman in the league that year, and the pairing with Buff was the 3rd most impactful in the NHL for 2017-18.

It’s not much of an observation to say his offence was gone, he knew it, the Jets knew it, you and I knew it. He adjusted, and had go left.
- Rexypoo

He was injury prone.
He could not handle the puck or shoot with his extra long stick.
He really needed to learn to not go to an ATM at midnight to withdraw cash.

This is a really good post! On the Heinola point you forgot to mention Sami Niku.
- TheUltimateJet

Lol...forgot about him....

He was injury prone.
He could not handle the puck or shoot with his extra long stick.
He really needed to learn to not go to an ATM at midnight to withdraw cash.
- bennythehat

Missing out on prime Toby is something that no one should have to live with. I’m sorry.

ATM thing is fair.

Agreed - they should try to dump their mistakes quicker.....of course, that's not so easy, when the other 31 teams usually recognize crap when they see it.
- bennythehat

This dead thread was worth checking and this post made me laugh....

I want to say congratulations to John Paddock on an excellent career. He announced his retirement from hockey yesterday. He was a great coach and GM of Jets 1.0. I think he would have brought us a championship if the team stayed in Winnipeg.

I want to say congratulations to John Paddock on an excellent career. He announced his retirement from hockey yesterday. He was a great coach and GM of Jets 1.0. I think he would have brought us a championship if the team stayed in Winnipeg.
- TheUltimateJet

I was playing no-contact rec hockey in Wpg against a team that had Paddock (Jets1.0 GM at the time) and Ray Neufeld on the team. We had a very talented player with a chip on his shoulder and he leveled Paddock with an open ice hit, i think he was trying to impress him?? and get an invite to camp - lol. Wish I could say it resulted in a big scrap or somethiing but all i recall is that a composed Paddock gave him a contemptuos look but restrained himself. I asked our guy something like 'what the hell' and he repsonded something like 'i will play my game, you play yours'. We went on to lose badly. (a lesson in there that sometimes the most talent doesn't make the best player). Also - Neufeld was the hardest player on the puck that i ever played against and I can't image doing that game in and game out like NHLers do every shift - - so so good at protecting the puck.

Missing out on prime Toby is something that no one should have to live with. I’m sorry.

ATM thing is fair.
- Rexypoo

Maybe if you start an online petition, True North will erect a statue of him across from the Hawerchuk one.

Maybe if you start an online petition, True North will erect a statue of him across from the Hawerchuk one.
- bennythehat

33, 39, 18, and 26 should be rafter’d.

33, 39, 18, and 26 should be rafter’d.
- Rexypoo

Thanks for the morning chuckle !

Only 26 has any chance of that happening.

Thanks for the morning chuckle !

Only 26 has any chance of that happening.
- bennythehat

Buff has a chance

Thanks for the morning chuckle !

Only 26 has any chance of that happening.
- bennythehat

There should be a #26 jersey burning night, everyone throws their Wheeler jerseys on the ice, ice scraping crew collects them and tosses them in a barrel at center ice and then one of them pours some gas in and throws a lit match, that'd be one great and deserving send off for Wheeler.

Buff has a chance
- 2.0

Hmmm.....after he strung the Jets along, tried to pass the blame for his injury/lack of treatment, and then dropped the whole thing when the NHLPA told him that he was wrong and they were not going to back him.....I don't see 33 in the rafters.

RE: Zadina - possibly a bit of an attitude problem, but I don't see any logic in taking a guy like that and playing him in the bottom 6.

RE: Heinola (the new Postma/Enstrom/Dano) - time to move on from him. He's not going to crack the lineup as it stands at the moment, so give him a fresh start somewhere else.
- bennythehat

not specific to this quote but more a a common theme in here;

I dont understand the argument, time to move on from guys like Heinola, Dano, Postma, Enstrom, Niku......whoever else. why do some fans on here think this is funny, by mocking those of us who want a guy like Heinola or wanted Niku or Dano to get longer looks and more chances must mean you agreed when the organization chose rather to play Pardy, Dahlstrom, Hendricks, Sbiza, Bitetto......and i can go on and create a list of horse shat player ten times longer than that of Dano, Niku, Heinola, Petan......Can i make fun of all you who dont want Heinola to get a chance cause you'd rather severely overpay Pionk for who hurts us every time hes on the ice rather than give a 22 year old under league min a chance?

not specific to this quote but more a a common theme in here;

I dont understand the argument, time to move on from guys like Heinola, Dano, Postma, Enstrom, Niku......whoever else. why do some fans on here think this is funny, by mocking those of us who want a guy like Heinola or wanted Niku or Dano to get longer looks and more chances must mean you agreed when the organization chose rather to play Pardy, Dahlstrom, Hendricks, Sbiza, Bitetto......and i can go on and create a list of horse shat player ten times longer than that of Dano, Niku, Heinola, Petan......Can i make fun of all you who dont want Heinola to get a chance cause you'd rather severely overpay Pionk for who hurts us every time hes on the ice rather than give a 22 year old under league min a chance?
- Ross77[/quot

Players lie Petan/Niku/Heinola (aside from being too small) are sometimes in the wrong place at the wrong time. Petan needed to be a Top 2 center and that wasn't going to happen here (or apparently anywhere else in the league). Heinola and Niku
are smallish defencemen on a team that already has 3 similar sized d-men.
Maybe if Heinola was a RH shot, he could find a spot on our team quicker.
Yeah, Pardy and the others sucked, but they were 4th liners and there were no higher expectations from anyone. We didn't tout them as being the answers and we didn't tout them as being good players.

[quote=Ross77]not specific to this quote but more a a common theme in here;

I dont understand the argument, time to move on from guys like Heinola, Dano, Postma, Enstrom, Niku......whoever else. why do some fans on here think this is funny, by mocking those of us who want a guy like Heinola or wanted Niku or Dano to get longer looks and more chances must mean you agreed when the organization chose rather to play Pardy, Dahlstrom, Hendricks, Sbiza, Bitetto......and i can go on and create a list of horse shat player ten times longer than that of Dano, Niku, Heinola, Petan......Can i make fun of all you who dont want Heinola to get a chance cause you'd rather severely overpay Pionk for who hurts us every time hes on the ice rather than give a 22 year old under league min a chance?
- bennythehat[/quot

Players lie Petan/Niku/Heinola (aside from being too small) are sometimes in the wrong place at the wrong time. Petan needed to be a Top 2 center and that wasn't going to happen here (or apparently anywhere else in the league). Heinola and Niku
are smallish defencemen on a team that already has 3 similar sized d-men.
Maybe if Heinola was a RH shot, he could find a spot on our team quicker.
Yeah, Pardy and the others sucked, but they were 4th liners and there were no higher expectations from anyone. We didn't tout them as being the answers and we didn't tout them as being good players.

pionk and scmidt take turns in our top 4 D and suck, Heinola could absolutely not do worse than those two. and yet to many on here just accept it. i dont care about size, i care about results. Stanley is big and no one gets beat in front of our own net more. cant teach stupid

Hmmm.....after he strung the Jets along, tried to pass the blame for his injury/lack of treatment, and then dropped the whole thing when the NHLPA told him that he was wrong and they were not going to back him.....I don't see 33 in the rafters.
- bennythehat

He’s a unicorn on the ice, truly one of a kind.

The off ice shenanigans at the end saved us from Myers, Chairot, and Tanev. I’d argue he deserves 33 in the rafters even more for that

He’s a unicorn on the ice, truly one of a kind.

The off ice shenanigans at the end saved us from Myers, Chairot, and Tanev. I’d argue he deserves 33 in the rafters even more for that
- Rexypoo

Speaking of right-side defensemen, I think signing Matt Dumba would be intriguing. He would make for an interesting reclamation project.

Speaking of right-side defensemen, I think signing Matt Dumba would be intriguing. He would make for an interesting reclamation project.
- TheUltimateJet

He’s 28, and fell off dramatically after major surgery.

That’s not a reclamation project, that’s halfway to Oscar Klefbom

There is an opportunity out there for an NHL GM to sign either K.Andre Miller or Lafreniere from the Rangers to an offer sheet. It would be amazing to see Chevy step out of his conservative shell and take a shot at one of these guys. Both have very bright futures.

Rangers only have approx $6 MM left to sign these two RFA's so offer both at $3.1 M each and screw the Rangers ! The cost to the Jets on each guy at that price level is a 2nd round pick only.

There is an opportunity out there for an NHL GM to sign either K.Andre Miller or Lafreniere from the Rangers to an offer sheet. It would be amazing to see Chevy step out of his conservative shell and take a shot at one of these guys. Both have very bright futures.

Rangers only have approx $6 MM left to sign these two RFA's so offer both at $3.1 M each and screw the Rangers ! The cost to the Jets on each guy at that price level is a 2nd round pick only.
- jetsnation

The players have to want to sign the offersheet though and to really get them to consider signing in Winnipeg the offersheet would need to be considerably higher and then the compensation gets bigger then just a 2nd rounder.

The Jets don't have their 2024 2nd round pick so I'm not sure they can even do that level of an offersheet.

There is an opportunity out there for an NHL GM to sign either K.Andre Miller or Lafreniere from the Rangers to an offer sheet. It would be amazing to see Chevy step out of his conservative shell and take a shot at one of these guys. Both have very bright futures.

Rangers only have approx $6 MM left to sign these two RFA's so offer both at $3.1 M each and screw the Rangers ! The cost to the Jets on each guy at that price level is a 2nd round pick only.
- jetsnation

Miller is off the board as he recently re-signed with Rangers.

I feel we may take a step backward next season, before, hopefully going forwad with some success. I am excited when I project the Jets line-up in, say, two years:

Some combination of:
Connor-Lambert-Ehlers
Valardi-Lucius-Barlow
Lowry-Chibrikov-McGroarty
Zhilkin-Kupari-NN

- with others like Rashevsky, Nikkanen, and Torgersson ready to step in for those who fail. And a D of:
JpMo-Salomonsson
Samberg-X
X-Bauer
- Chisholm
- the "X's" can Be filled with the trades of Hellebuyck and Scheiffele.

And G
DiVincentiis
Milic

Problem is, like many others, maybe I value our draft picks too high. Some, as in the past, will not make it. But I can "hope", can't I? Hope breeds excitement!

You?

The players have to want to sign the offersheet though and to really get them to consider signing in Winnipeg the offersheet would need to be considerably higher and then the compensation gets bigger then just a 2nd rounder.

The Jets don't have their 2024 2nd round pick so I'm not sure they can even do that level of an offersheet.
- JetFuel

Good point on the 2024 Draft pick although its not hard to swap draft picks for 2025 to 2024 and throw in a 6th or 7th.

I now see Miller signed for 3.87 M which leaves only approx 2.2M for Lafreniere. It's hard to imagine AL signing for that unless he really wants to stay with the Rangers.

Miller is off the board as he recently re-signed with Rangers.

I feel we may take a step backward next season, before, hopefully going forwad with some success. I am excited when I project the Jets line-up in, say, two years:

Some combination of:
Connor-Lambert-Ehlers
Valardi-Lucius-Barlow
Lowry-Chibrikov-McGroarty
Zhilkin-Kupari-NN

- with others like Rashevsky, Nikkanen, and Torgersson ready to step in for those who fail. And a D of:
JpMo-Salomonsson
Samberg-X
X-Bauer
- Chisholm
- the "X's" can Be filled with the trades of Hellebuyck and Scheiffele.

And G
DiVincentiis
Milic

Problem is, like many others, maybe I value our draft picks too high. Some, as in the past, will not make it. But I can "hope", can't I? Hope breeds excitement!

You?
- grahamzky

You missed Perfetti !

You missed Perfetti !
- jetsnation

You are so right.

Felt like I was missing some one but couldn't put a handle on it -and was in a bit of a hurry and too lazy to look it up. Hopefully Perfettti plays a huge part.

An embarrassment of riches - in MY mind!

What would we do with Lafreniere ?