It has been a difficult two months of hockey for the Winnipeg Jets. Ever since packing up and heading south for their league-mandated 'bye week', the key weapons of Winnipeg's core have gone silent.
With failure to see consistent offensive production, head coach Rick Bowness opted to make some changes in advance of the Jets' final test of their three-game Pacific Division road trip.
Those lineup changes saw recent acquisition Vladislav Namestnikov move up into the top-six, while Nikolaj Ehlers skated alongside Adam Lowry and Mason Appleton on the team's third line.
"You know what you're getting with those two, they don't have off nights," Ehlers said in advance of playing with his new running mates. "They play the same way every single game. They're fun to play with. Lows is, both ways, really good. He plays hard, gets those loose pucks, and Appy has a lot of speed. We'll try and use our speed down the wings and Lows will get it done."
In hopes of bouncing back from their demoralizing 4-1 loss to the Los Angeles Kings on Saturday afternoon, the Jets once again turned to some off-ice activities to get their minds away from their difficult months of February and March. Because who wouldn't want to kick back, relax and enjoy the local California scene amid the most important stretch of the season?
That choice, however, did not pay off, as they were shut out for the third time in their past seven games, falling to the league-worst San Jose Sharks 3-0 on Tuesday.
“Some of these guys think they’re giving us everything in their tank, they’re dreaming," Bowness said matter-of-factly postgame on Tuesday.
Winnipeg has been downright atrocious since the team's extended All-Star break from January 31 to February 10. That span of 10 days in the sun certainly did some damage, and it wasn't something that a simple concoction of aloe vera and extra virgin coconut oil could clear up.
Two months ago, the Jets sat alone atop the Central Division and had won eight of nine games. Sure, that kind of productivity cannot be sustained - unless you are the Boston Bruins, of course - but dropping five of seven games following that victory over Arizona on January 15th? That was definitely not on the bingo card of any Jets player, staff member, fan, or even local reporter.
And things really haven't gotten much better for Winnipeg over the two months following that stretch.
"It feels like the sky is falling a bit, but we're still in a good spot," Lowry said back in late-January.
At that point, Lowry's quote was bang-on. Now, well, it's just miserable.
In their 23 games since the All-Star break, the Jets have amassed just nine total wins, including six one-goal victories - three by way of overtime.
Having beaten Chicago 4-1 in their first game following the break, the Jets initially appeared to be on the right track. But in the weeks following, Winnipeg has since beaten an opponent by three-plus goals on just one occasion. That game came on February 20. The last time the Jets have won by more than one goal was on March 4. Six of their nine post-bye week wins have featured just a single goal differential.
It is safe to say that the Jets have sputtered.
Winnipeg went five games without a win from February 21 to March 3, while recording just two wins in a span of 25 days through March 11.
Oh, and the power play? It is essentially non-existent.
With the season very much on the line, Winnipeg managed to find back-to-back wins on a weekend road trip thorough Florida. But as recent struggles have indicated, finding a way to string the wins together came to halt, as losses to Carolina and Boston put the mini streak to rest.
An overtime win in Nashville on March 18 was dubbed as Winnipeg's largest since the Game 7 victory back in the second round of the 2018 Stanley Cup Playoffs.
That win, however, was succeeded by yet another disheartening follow-up game with St. Louis. A 3-0 shutout in Missouri set the rumour mill into full motion once again.
Winnipeg earned a narrow 2-1 win over Arizona at home, before hitting the road for the three-game trek through California. Another one-goal victory over the cellar-dwelling Anaheim Ducks provided the Jets with a false sense of hope.
A brutal weekend performance against Los Angeles and the shutout loss in San Jose has the Jets just two points up on the Calgary Flames and three on the Predators - who had previously made it clear they were sellers earlier in the month at the trade deadline.
Nashville (73 games played) does hold two games in hand over Winnipeg, while both the Jets and Flames have just seven games remaining.
Interestingly, in those seven games, the Jets play both the Flames and Predators, with each contest coming in the friendly confines of Canada Life Centre.
"Just stay in the moment," coach Bowness said on Tuesday. "We put ourselves in this position, let's keep it. But let's not look any further ahead than your next shift. It's down to that time in the season. The most important thing is your next shift, the next period, the next game. So we want them dialled in on what's happening right now."
At 22-12-2 on the season at home, Winnipeg should benefit from a home-heavy remaining schedule. Five of its seven remaining games will be played in Manitoba.
Despite the lack of continued success, the show does go on for the Jets. Local fans will just have to wait and see what the chef cooks up for dinner as the team hits home ice on Friday for the first time since March 21. After a healthy plate of turnovers on Saturday and a goose egg on Tuesday, Friday's game against Andrew Copp and the Detroit Red Wings just may be the biggest test of the year thus far.