Morrissey hopes Jets' 1st-round exit 'stings for all of us'
Josh Morrissey wants the Winnipeg Jets' series loss to the Colorado Avalanche to resonate with his teammates and inspire them going forward.
"Right now it's just disappointing, it's frustrating, it feels like a missed opportunity ... but the only way that there's any good from this is that we learn from it," the Jets defenseman said following a 6-3 defeat in Game 5 of their first-round matchup that ended Winnipeg's season Tuesday night.
"They brought the Stanley Cup-winning class to this series, and we didn't return it for three or four of those games," Morrissey added. "So we have levels that we need to find this offseason, and I hope it stings for all of us into the summer, and we use it as motivation."
The Avalanche outscored the Jets 28-15 in the series, including 5-2, 6-2, and 5-1 wins alongside the aforementioned 6-3 victory over the final four contests.
Vezina Trophy finalist and favorite Connor Hellebuyck struggled mightily throughout the five games, finishing with a .864 save percentage and 24 goals allowed. However, Hellebuyck has also faced the most shots and made the most saves among all netminders in these playoffs, so Morrissey wasn't interested in singling him out for the team's fate.
"I'm not going to put any blame on Helly, that's for sure," the blue-liner said. "We wouldn't be where we're at right now if it weren't for him, the way he's played all year. Go through a lot of those goals and tell me if he could've stopped them."
What happened to Connor Hellebuyck? There's more than one answer but give the Avs credit for being on top of him all series.
— Mike Kelly (@MikeKellyNHL) May 1, 2024
Colorado scored 10 goals with a screen, most of any team. Hellebuyck finished with a save % of .737 on screened shots - last among goalies with at least 2… pic.twitter.com/BYwFab3F1H
Morrissey notched three goals and an assist while averaging 24:35 of ice time in the series. He collected 10 tallies and 59 helpers while averaging 24:11 over 81 regular-season games.
The 29-year-old has worn an "A" for Winnipeg for the last five campaigns. He's spent nine seasons with the Jets, who drafted him 13th overall in 2013.