Jets' second line must take back depth edge to help wrestle home-ice advantage

DENVER — They are the most notable omissions on the long list of players who have accumulated points through two games of this thrilling series, but they no longer can be that by the end of Game 3 if the Winnipeg Jets are to wrestle back the advantage they surrendered to the Colorado Avalanche.

As the action shifts to Ball Arena, where the Avalanche went 31-9-1 this season, Nikolaj Ehlers, Sean Monahan and Tyler Toffoli have to make the difference they’re capable of making. We’re talking about three players who accumulated 84 goals and 175 points between them over the regular season, so zero beyond this point isn’t going to cut it if the Jets are going to regain home-ice advantage.

This is supposed to be a strength for this team — a layer of depth the top-heavy Avalanche shouldn’t be able to quite match — and it has to be one for them moving forward. Thirteen Colorado players have produced in this series to Winnipeg’s 12 and taken the edge the Jets must regain.

“We’ve talked a lot about depth here, but certainly, so far in this series, they’ve done a really nice job,” Avalanche coach Jared Bednar said of his charges. “They’re chipping in with the offence, they’ve been really, pretty good on the defensive side of things.

“If you want to advance in current playoff format, you have to be a four-line team. You have to get contributions throughout your lineup, not just your forwards but your D. You’ve got to have guys waiting in the wings if there’s injuries, it’s just the way it is. When you’re playing teams that finished the same place you finished or ahead of you in the first round, you need everybody, and they’re doing a nice job so far in this series of contributing.”

It’s time for Ehlers, Monahan and Toffoli to do the same for the Jets.

Their ability together is proven. Through 106:13 as a line at five-on-five — between the time Toffoli was acquired from the New Jersey Devils, on March 8, through the end of the regular season — they outscored their opposition 11-4.

That wasn’t a function of luck, either. Ehlers, Monahan and Toffoli completely outplayed whomever they were matched against, owning 58 per cent of the shot attempts and a 61-per-cent share of the expected goals while producing seven of their goals and allowing only one against from the high-danger zone.

In the process, they proved they fit well together.

Speaking with Ehlers ahead of Game 2, he explained why that is — and why they should continue to work well together — despite all three of them being such different players.

“Tof is a guy who can shoot the puck really well,” Ehlers said. “Monny is a great two-way centreman who’s in the right spots, who you know is going to pass you the puck, and he’s also got great patience with the puck. All I have to do is skate and use my speed as much as I can with or without the puck to get the puck into spots where Tof is finding that open shot or Monny’s coming into a spot where I can lay it into him. I need to get into the races without the puck to shake it loose or create looks.”

All three of them need to execute better than they have to this point of this series, and it’s not just their finish that needs polishing.

Ehlers, Monahan and Toffoli have managed just 44 per cent of the shot attempts and only 28 per cent of the expected goals in their 19:19 at five-on-five in this series, and those are numbers that have to climb for them to succeed. Especially if they continue to start 64 per cent of their shifts in the offensive zone.

It is there that all three players have proven to be threatening throughout their respective careers.

Monahan, who was drafted sixth overall by the Calgary Flames in 2013, has been particularly productive in playoffs prior, accumulating 10 goals and 21 points in the 30 games he played coming into this series.

Even if Toffoli hasn’t quite matched his regular-season production in the post-season — scoring just 18 goals in the 88 playoff games he played before this series started — he’s always found a way to come up clutch since making his spring-time debut with the Los Angeles Kings in 2013. Jets fans know this well, after seeing him come up with one of his four game-winners in the playoffs to send the Montreal Canadiens past their team in the 2021 playoffs.

Ehlers played in all four of those games against the Canadiens but missed four of five the Jets played against the Vegas Golden Knights last year. He has accumulated 457 in 605 regular-season games, but most of his playoff experience came at a time far earlier in his career, when he was less poised to impact the game in the way he should be able to now.

Monahan believes the 28-year-old not only has everything it takes to do it right now, but a burning desire to make a difference as one of the most tenured Jets.

“He wants to win,” said Monahan ahead of Game 2. “You look at him, and I can feel it now being in the same boat, he’s been here a long time and he wants to win and prove to the city and the organization that he’s a big part of it.”

Both of them and Toffoli have a chance to influence the outcome in Friday’s Game 3, and they must.

Last time they played together at Ball Arena (on April 13), they combined for three of the goals the Jets scored in a 7-0 win over the Avalanche. Just teaming up for one while keeping whomever they’re matched up against to none can make all the difference in a playoff game likely to be decided by a far slimmer margin.

Toffoli, who turned 32 on Wednesday, felt there was something to take from that regular-season performance to transfer to Friday’s game.

“I thought we were really crisp, and we executed on every play,” he said. “We did a really good job creating space for each other and capitalizing on our opportunities.”

Jets coach Rick Bowness said Toffoli, Ehlers and Monahan will have to do a better job of spreading out and moving the puck across the width of the ice to access what makes them successful as a line.

“They know they can give us more,” Bowness concluded, “and we’re going to need more.”

Jets and Avs weigh in on Bob Cole’s life and legacy

It was sombre around the rink on Thursday, with news spreading that legendary broadcaster Bob Cole had passed away.

Members of both the Avalanche and Jets were saddened to hear of his loss at age 90. They shared their thoughts on his long life and his lasting legacy.

Avalanche superstar Nathan MacKinnon, who hails from Halifax, got to know Cole at different charity events in Eastern Canada.

“Really sad,” MacKinnon said when told of the St. John’s, N.L., native’s passing. “He’s such a legend, such a great man. I’ve met him a few times over the years. At charity golf tournaments in Halifax, he’d come out and support Atlantic Canadians. Amazing person, super funny, just a great guy, and obviously some of the best calls of all time. Super sad to hear that.”

Cale Makar was surprised to hear it upon reaching his stall in the Avalanche locker room following Thursday’s practice.

“So many memories of his announcing games,” he said. “That’s very sad, wow. I’d have to look back and see if anything stands out specifically, but obviously he was such a legendary announcement and such an awesome human being. That’s a tough loss for the hockey world.”

Zach Parise, who grew up in Minnesota and has spent the entirety of his 20-year career playing in the United States, still felt Cole’s reach.

“Just an iconic voice,” Parise said. “We didn’t get it as much in the States, and we might not be as familiar with it as the Canadians are, but we know it.

“It’s brutal news. Terrible, and very sad.”

For Toffoli, who grew up in Scarborough, Ont., Cole’s voice was one he heard often coming out of his television set.

“Seeing that this morning, waking up, was pretty disheartening. Real unfortunate,” he said. “The career he had affected so many people, and so many guys’ careers as well. Definitely a sad day in hockey for sure.

“Waking up to it (the news) this morning, you see some of the videos, some of the calls, it’s definitely very emotional. Just a huge part in hockey and affected a lot of people.”

For Bowness, who hails from Moncton, N.B., and came across Cole many times over his hockey career, the news hit hard.

“I think the hockey world, we lost a legend today,” Bowness said. “We lost a wonderful human being. I spent a lot of time with Bob over the years. There's not necessarily a specific story, but the most important thing is that all the coaches around the league and all the hockey people, they trusted him. He was a true pro. You could tell him anything, and he called a great game. Very respectful, very professional. I had a good rapport with Bob … I just had nothing but respect for him. The hockey world lost a really good human being today.”