The Jets After 18 Games: A Quietly Dangerous Offense

If you sit with the Winnipeg Jets’ stat line for a minute, sipping your morning cup of coffee, you start to see a picture that isn’t shouting for attention, but it’s telling you something all the same about this team. Eighteen games in, the Jets look like a team that knows exactly where its bread is buttered: at the top of the lineup. And for now, those top-end guys are giving them enough to stay in the race and look dangerous doing it.

A Look at the Jets’ Top Five Offensive Producers

Mark Scheifele, for starters, is having one of those seasons where the game seems to slow down for him. Eleven goals, thirteen assists, twenty-four points in eighteen games. That’s the work of a player who’s figured out where to be and when to be there. So far, he’s produced three power-play goals, three power-play assists, and a shooting percentage north of 26 percent. Perhaps that last number won’t stay that high, but it tells you how cleanly he’s hitting his chances. And when Scheifele is humming like this, the Jets usually follow.

Then you slide your eyes over to Kyle Connor, and it’s the familiar story. This guy is one of the best unknown scorers in the NHL. He gets shots like other people get mail. Seventy shots already. Ten goals. Two shorthanded goals neatly tucked in the package like loose change in your pocket. He’s always dependable, even if he’s not at his sharpest finishing-wise. Simple thing about Connor: he’s still scoring because he always finds the puck. Jets’ fans don’t worry about Connor; he’ll shoot his way into a groove.

Jets’ Defenseman Josh Morrissey Is Running the Offense

Josh Morrissey is doing the thing elite defensemen do: he’s running the offense without anyone needing to make a big announcement about it. So far, he’s put up nineteen points. Sixteen assists. He’s even playing half the game some nights. And the critical part? He’s steady. No swagger for show. Just one of the most reliable blue-line engines in the league.

After that, things get interesting. Gabriel Vilardi’s fourteen points look good until you see the -3, which whispers that something isn’t quite right defensively. But the talent is there. He’s put up two power-play goals, lots of puck touches, and a sense that he’s one good week from taking off. Nino Niederreiter is doing Nino Niederreiter things. He’s quietly productive, quietly physical, and quietly valuable. Eleven points from your middle six over eighteen games is precisely how you stay competitive when your stars aren’t scoring.

What Are We Actually Seeing from the Jets Offensively?

The Jets are top-heavy, but not in a bad way. The stars are carrying the mail, the secondary guys are chipping in just enough, and the defense is adding offense without losing structure. There are really no huge surprises. No red flags. The team hasn’t taken off like it did last season after 18 games, but they remain in the hunt.

If anything, the surprise is how calmly they’re scoring. No heater. No one is wildly overperforming. Just steady work from steady hands. And that’s usually the kind of foundation that lasts beyond eighteen games.