Pond Hockey Doesn't Cut It for the Winnipeg Jets
Now what for the Winnipeg Jets? It’s becoming clear that the team just isn’t close to what it was last season. But, perhaps, what yesterday’s uninspired loss to the Detroit Red Wings showed is that there’s little heart left to get it back.
The Tone Has Changed Throughout the Team, and That Includes Coach Scott Arniel
The standings and the math aren’t changing, but the team’s tone sure is. For the Jets, that moment came after a dull, lifeless 5–1 loss to Detroit — and Scott Arniel didn’t bother to let it be. As he noted after the game, his team was looking to play ‘pond hockey.’ Don’t be physical, play without an edge or a pushback. Just skate around and hope the game would stay close long enough for something good to happen. That’s not a plan. That’s avoidance.
What made it worse was the setting. The Jets’ home building was full. One of the few sellouts this season. And by the third period, the crowd had turned its cheers into frustration. “Do something!” rang out loud enough to stop conversations. Later, “Let’s Go Red Wings” echoed through Canada Life Centre. That’s the sound of patience wearing thin.
Arniel Was Blunt About His Team
Arniel was blunt because he had to be. This wasn’t a game that slipped away. Detroit took it. Winnipeg let them. Five unanswered goals will do that, especially when there’s no response after the tying goal, no push once the lead’s gone, and no fundamental belief once the game tilts.
And here’s the uncomfortable part: this game didn’t feel like an outlier. It’s been the way the team’s been playing almost all season. Right now, the Jets sit eight points out of a wild-card spot. They’re seventh in the Central. They’re not far removed from an 11-game losing streak. Secondary scoring has been an issue all year, and now it’s showing up when there’s no time left for patience. Arniel wasn’t just reacting to one night — this sounded like a month’s worth of frustration boiling over.
The Jets Have No More Excuses
For Arniel, the excuses are gone. The schedule isn’t forgiving. The road trip ahead — New Jersey, Tampa Bay, Florida, Dallas — isn’t where teams “find themselves.” It’s where teams either dig in or drift further out of the picture.
Arniel said it plainly: the Jets are fighting for their lives. That means details and shifts matter. Pushback matters. You don’t get to float through two periods and hope the math works later.
The Jets still have goaltending. They still have talent. What they don’t have right now is margin. And when that disappears, effort stops being optional. This is the stretch where you find out who’s still in the fight — and who’s already looking at the calendar.