Jets' Bowness: We're 'not even close' to being happy about our play

Despite a 5-3-1 start to the season, Winnipeg Jets head coach Rick Bowness isn't impressed with his team's form.

"Are we happy with where we are (in the standings)? Absolutely. ... Are we happy with our team play? Absolutely not. Not even close," Bowness said Tuesday before even being asked a question by reporters.

"I talked to the players about that today. We've had one really good game, and that was St. Louis. The other games have been below the standards and our expectations of how we want to play. We're in a good spot, and we're gonna have to play a whole lot better to stay there."

Bowness, who's only coached one of his team's nine games this season due to a bout with COVID-19, added: "Good teams find ways to win. We found ways to win. ... The effort is inconsistent. The compete is inconsistent. And the puck management is a huge issue right now."

Even though Winnipeg sits in second place in the Central Division, the Jets are giving up the 10th-most shots in the league (33.4 per game) and have an average shot differential of -3.8, which ranks in the bottom third.

Additionally, Winnipeg is 24th in the NHL in shot attempts for percentage (46.6%) and 29th in expected goals for percentage (42.6%), all while giving up the eighth-most high-danger chances at five-on-five (104), according to Natural Stat Trick.

The Jets' most convincing win of the season came on Oct. 24 when they blanked the St. Louis Blues 4-0 at home - which Bowness alluded to - but they were then outshot 54-95 at five-on-five on their proceeding three-game road trip. Winnipeg also only controlled 35.9% of the expected goals and 39.3% of the scoring chances during that stretch despite going 2-0-1.

"I think we were lucky to get away with some of the points that we did on this trip. ... We're just coming out sluggish," Jets forward Kyle Connor said.

He continued: "We've got to realize that we can't sustain the way we've been playing right now. … We know that we have so much more to give in our standard and our expectation for us, so that is exciting."

A major key to the Jets' success in the standings has been Connor Hellebuyck. He ranks in the top six in both goals saved above average (6.42) and goals saved above expected (7.98) at all strengths, according to Evolving Hockey.

The Jets next play Thursday against the Montreal Canadiens at 8 p.m. ET.