The story of the Winnipeg Jets’ first 41 games — and it’s an absolutely astounding one — is really a tale of the second quarter of the season. By any measure, the Jets were having a decent season as of Nov. 30. Third place in the Central Division seemed like their pre-season ceiling and that’s exactly where Winnipeg was with 22 games in the books.

Then something outrageous happened.

When the calendar flipped to December, the Jets turned into the NHL’s premier outfit. They are 16-1-2 since then, their only 60-minute loss coming one month ago in the form of a 2-1 setback in San Jose.

If you want to be that way, you could point out 10 of those 19 games have come against the dregs of the NHL in Chicago, Anaheim, San Jose, Minnesota and Columbus.

Still, Winnipeg has also beaten Colorado twice — by a combined score of 10-4 — and thumped the Boston Bruins 5-1.

Make no mistake, this has been a marvelous run that has set the team up beautifully for the second half of the year.

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Key Stats

Record: 28-9-4 (First in the Central Division, first overall in the NHL)

Goals per game: 3.39 (ninth in the NHL)

Goals-against per game: 2.29 (first in the NHL)

Power play: 17.5 per cent (23^rd in the NHL)

Penalty kill: 76.3 per cent (26^th in the NHL)

Biggest Surprise

If you want to nitpick about the calibre of Winnipeg’s opponents in the past six weeks, you also have to point out that the Jets lost sniper Kyle Connor to a knee injury on Dec. 10 in Anaheim. At the time, only three guys in the league had more goals than Connor’s 17 in 26 contests.

That Winnipeg could lose a player of Connor’s ability and absolutely soar in his absence basically defies all logic.

There are a few reasons, though, why the Jets have been able to do it.

First off, the goalies have been fantastic. After a so-so start, Connor Hellebuyck has demonstrated why the team was happy to commit $60 million to him on a contract extension right before the season started. The big man has a .940 save percentage since mid-November, better than every goalie in the league who’s made at least eight appearances in that time except … his backup Laurent Brossoit, who has the exact save SP.

But Winnipeg didn’t need to replace Connor’s saves; it had to replace his goals.

Enter Nik Ehlers.

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The year started poorly for the Dane, with neck spasms hampering his ability to take part in training camp. When the season began, Ehlers managed just a pair of goals and six points through 14 outings.

But — and stop us when you’ve heard this before — since mid-November he’s been an absolute monster, registering a point-per-game 13-14-27 line. Since Connor went down, Ehlers has popped eight goals and 17 points in 15 outings.

In that same stretch, newcomer Gabe Vilardi has nine goals and 16 points, playing beside Ehlers and centre Mark Scheifele on the top unit.

Just for fun, Vilardi — who had to deal with an MCL injury right out of the gate — is playing at a 68-point pace this year. He was just part of the return Winnipeg got from Los Angeles last summer for Pierre-Luc Dubois, who is currently tracking a 35-point season with the Kings.

Biggest Disappointment

This is surprisingly easy given how well things have gone; it’s the special teams.

The power play ranks 23^rd in the league and is somehow worse since the Jets caught fire, ranking 26^th in the NHL at just 15.4 per cent since Dec. 1.

The penalty kill, on the other hand, has improved in that time, ranking 13^th in the league at 80.4 per cent while still slotting 26^th overall for the entire season.

Maybe once Connor returns to a team where other players are already humming, the man advantage will uptick at least a bit.

Biggest Question for the Second Half

Nobody pegged the Jets to be first overall in the league at the midway point, but here we are.

And when you’re having that much success, questions about adding ahead of the March 8 trade deadline naturally follow.

Speaking to the press about the state of the team on Thursday, GM Kevin Cheveldayoff acknowledged even he is caught slightly off-guard by the lofty achievements of this squad so far.

In terms of adding more pieces, he cited the usual considerations — salary-cap concerns, etc. — but with scouting meetings slated for next week, internal plans are taking form.

“All I can say is we’ll be prepared as we always are to make the proper decisions,” Cheveldayoff said.

If history is any indication, Cheveldayoff is unlikely to sit on his hands. The Winnipeg squad that made the final four in 2018 was aided by the acquisition of Paul Stastny at the deadline and the veteran pivot had a huge hand in that run, recording 15 points in 17 post-season contests.

The next year Cheveldayoff again ponied up for a centre, sending a first-round pick to the Rangers for Kevin Hayes. In 2020, it was a third-round pick for Dylan DeMelo, who remains an important part of the squad.

Not surprisingly, given how important the two positions are, Cheveldayoff could again be targeting the middle of the ice and the blueline.

Vlad Namestnikov has done an admirable job as 2C, but is punching above his weight there. Maybe Cheveldayoff should get on the horn with his Canadian counterpart Kent Hughes in Montreal and see about a package deal for Sean Monahan and David Savard. Monahan — who’s on a cheap, expiring deal — could be anything from a reliable second-line centre to a winger on any of the top three lines. Savard, meanwhile, would bring grit, playoff experience and a cheeky ability to kick in some offence.

Cheveldayoff has certainly shown a willingness to support Jets teams he believed in in the past. And given where they stand right now, how could he not have faith in this one?

Jets mid-season report: Can top team in league get even better?

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