ANALYSIS: Making the case for a better Jets finish in Central Division race

The Winnipeg Jets are heading into the final week and a half of the NHL’s regular season schedule, still with a shot at improving their current third-place position in the Central Division standings.

And yours truly is prepared to make the case for that to happen.

Now, the odds are still very much stacked in favour of a 1-2 finish by Dallas and Colorado in the Central.

For Winnipeg to change that narrative, it would require sweeping the Predators, Stars and Avalanche — right in their own buildings.

And there is reasonable doubt for that to occur after the Jets left plenty of areas for self-improvement in last week’s home wins over Los Angeles and Calgary, as well as the Saturday victory in St. Paul.

But would your honour, and the have-every-reason-to-be-skeptical jury, please consider the following submissions to support the idea that the Jets gaining home ice advantage in round one remains very much in play.

Nashville has descended back to earth since their 14-0-2 run with four losses in their last six games. Will the Preds perform at the same level Tuesday night, as the confident team that ran roughshod over the Jets nearly a month ago at Canada Life Centre? Perhaps more importantly, will Winnipeg play as slow and disconnected as they did in that 4-2 loss?

Moving along, your honour, could the Jets be any more motivated to win in Dallas after the way they played in that lacklustre 4-1 loss to the Stars in late February? And also, to avoid being swept in four game season series while proving something to themselves ahead of the playoffs?

And finally, your honour, Colorado does have some question marks while they grapple with the anxiety from a 2-4-1 slide. Most notably, there is the inconsistent performance of number one netminder Alexandar Georgiev, and the health of Mikko Rantanen, who went into concussion protocol during Friday’s concerning 6-2 loss in Edmonton.

The teams will now go through their deliberations, and at this time next week, we’ll approach the bench for a final ruling.

4:13 John Shannon on the Jets: April 3

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