The Winnipeg Jets have banked five of a possible six points to open the 2026-27 season, and that start has given them plenty to like after three games. They opened with a 4-3 overtime loss to the Boston Bruins on Oct. 2, then beat the Detroit Red Wings 3-2 on Oct. 4, and followed that with another 3-2 win over the Pittsburgh Penguins on Oct. 5.
There’s still a tiny sample here, but the early signs are hard to miss: this team looks quicker, its power play is humming, and a couple of new faces have already won over the crowd.
The biggest visual change is pace. The Jets brought in younger legs and moved on from an older, slower group that made them look bogged down last season.
Out went Gustav Nyquist, Tanner Peason, Jonathan Toews, Luke Schenn, and Logan Stanley from last season’s opening-night roster. In came Viggo Bjorck, Mario Ferraro, Brad Lambert, Isak Rosen, and Cole Perfetti, who started last season on injured reserve.
That shift shows up in the numbers, too. The Jets are currently 10th in the league in 18-20 MPH speed bursts, 25th in 20-22 MPH bursts, and eighth in 22-plus MPH bursts.
Last season, those marks were 27th, 28th, and 32rd, respectively. The result is a forecheck that looks far more aggressive and a team that can play with a much higher tempo.
The power play has been just as eye-catching. Winnipeg is 4-for-8 so far, good for a 50 per cent clip, and it has already created plenty of dangerous looks. The best example came in Detroit, where the Jets scored on all three of their first power-play chances.
Perfetti has settled in well in the bumper spot, and Kyle Connor has been the driving force behind the unit, scoring three of the power-play goals himself.
“It’s a lot quicker. The attack mindset is there.
Not just the first attack, it’s the retrievals,” head coach Scott Arniel said postgame Sunday of the power play. “We’re doing a fantastic job on retrievals.
Our entries are real good. When you do that, that means it’s possession, and now you’re wearing the opposition’s (penalty kill) down a little bit.”
That kind of start won’t last at a 50 per cent rate, but if Winnipeg’s power play can stay closer to its 2024-25 level - 28.90 per cent, which led the league - than last season’s 18.50 per cent mark, it could swing a lot of games.
Two new names have also given the fan base plenty to latch onto.
Tyrel Bauer has made a fast impression through his first two NHL games. He dropped the gloves with Mark Kastelic in the home opener, jumped in right away after Vladislav Namestnikov took a big hit in that same game, and then knocked out Keegan Kolesar in a first-period fight against the Red Wings. He sat out against the Penguins.
Bauer’s reputation with the Manitoba Moose over the last four seasons already told people what kind of player he is: tough, relentless, and never willing to back down. The 24-year-old has brought a physical edge to the blue line, and Winnipeg fans have clearly taken to the way he plays.
He was the most-searched player on HockeyDB on Sunday. Still, he’ll need to choose his spots as his profile keeps rising.
Stuart Skinner has drawn a different kind of reaction, but the welcome has been just as loud. Because he’s happy to play for Winnipeg and chose the city, fans have embraced him as the anti-Connor-Hellebuyck. At the home opener, “STUUU” chants broke out every time he and the puck were anywhere near each other.
Forced into the No. 1 job after Hellebuyck’s trade demand and subsequent suspension for refusing to report to the team, Skinner has handled the early stretch well enough. His first regular-season goal against as a Jet came on a knuckling, unscreened shot from the point that he simply whiffed on, but his overall line is solid: 1-0-1, a 2.92 goals against average, a .909 save percentage, and 1.2 goals saved above expected. He was especially sharp in the third period against Detroit, when Winnipeg was scrambling and the Red Wings were pushing for the tying goal.
Skinner has lived through the full range of highs and lows in his career, and that may continue, but he should have a long runway with Jets fans. He’s not likely to become the kind of scapegoat he was near the end of his time with the Oilers.
The schedule won’t get easier, either. Winnipeg’s next test comes Wednesday night against the Colorado Avalanche at Canada Life Centre, the first game of a three-game homestand.
In Other News...
Bruins Young Center Suddenly Finds Himself In Uncomfortable Trade Chatter
A young center trying to settle back into the Bruins lineup has suddenly been pulled into the kind of trade chatter that tends to follow promising players with uncertain NHL footing. NHL insider Darren Dreger reported that the Oilers have been in discussions for a young Eastern Conference center with upside, and while no name was confirmed, the speculation around Boston has naturally centered on Matt Poitras, who recently returned from injury.
For the Bruins, the timing is awkward because Poitras is still in the process of proving he can stick at this level. Edmonton is not believed to be in a hurry to force a move, and no deal has been confirmed, but the possibility alone underscores how quickly a players situation can shift once other teams start calling. In Boston, it leaves one of the clubs more intriguing young forwards in the middle of a rumor that is still developing. [Read more 🡒]
Bruins' Early Promise Comes With A Concern Fans Know Too Well
Three games into the season, there is already a little bit to like about Bostons start, especially the way some younger pieces have been folded into meaningful roles. JJ Peterka has provided promising contributions, and Jeremy Swayman along with Michael DiPietro have given the Bruins a look at how the goaltending picture could settle in as coach Marco Sturm continues to hand significant ice time to younger players.
Still, the early returns come with a familiar edge of concern for a team that knows how unforgiving the Atlantic Division can be. Boston has had mixed results, including a 4-3 overtime win and a 4-1 loss, and the next stretch will force a closer look at roster decisions while divisional matchups start to sharpen the questions about whether the encouraging signs can hold up. [Read more 🡒]
Bruins Fans Should Watch This New Oilers Center Rumor
The Oilers are again being linked to a hunt for help down the middle, and the latest rumor has a familiar name to Bruins fans attached to it. Edmonton is said to be pursuing a young Eastern Conference center, which is the sort of report that immediately draws attention in Boston because of the overlap with a player the Bruins know well and have tracked closely through his early NHL stretch.
For the Bruins, the interest is less about the rumor mill itself than what it says about where Edmonton thinks it needs to get better. Boston has seen the flashes from that young center and knows his value when healthy, so any suggestion that the Oilers might circle back on him is worth watching. The talk is still early, but it adds another layer to a busy stretch of speculation around multiple teams and a reminder that the Bruins could be part of a bigger trade conversation before long. [Read more 🡒]