Winnipeg Jets reflect on missing playoffs, one year after claiming NHL’s best record

The Winnipeg Jets wrap up their season Thursday at home against San Jose, capping off what’s been a disappointing campaign for players and fans alike.

Just one year removed from winning the President’s Trophy for the league’s best record, the Jets will miss the playoffs for the first time since 2022.

“It sucks,” said captain Adam Lowry. “You come into training camp, and coming off the season we had last year, it’s playoff aspirations, Stanley Cup aspirations, and we came well short of that, and there’s a feeling of disappointment.”

Winnipeg is just the fifth reigning Presidents’ Trophy winner to miss the playoffs the following season.

“We didn’t fulfill the objective and that’s to play in the Stanley Cup playoffs,” said head coach Scott Arniel. “And for fans, it’s real disappointing especially after last year and the excitement that happened this time of year around the city and with the games. The other night when we found out we lost, it’s a gut punch.”

The Jets made a valiant late-season push for the postseason, going 13-5-4 over a stretch from Feb. 25 to April 9. But three straight losses over the last week sealed their fate.

For Lowry, injuries and poor play early in the season, culminating in an 11-game losing streak, created too big of a hole to climb out of.

“That’s why you talk about consistency, that’s why you talk about performance from the start of the year to the end of the year, and how critical points are regardless of the time of the year,” the captain said. “So it’s frustrating. I think from a team standpoint, we know we could have performed a lot better.”

WATCH: What went wrong for the Winnipeg Jets this season?

And of course, no playoffs means no Whiteout party for fans.

“It’s going to be sad not having that this year,” said Jets fan Max Houghton, who was at Whiteout for the Manitoba Miracle last year. “But you know, like I said, it is what it is. We gotta keep on moving forward, keep on supporting our team.”

“It sucks because we’ve come to expect playoff hockey here,” added fan Chris Chin. “But at the end of the day, it’s one season. So hopefully we can build on a strong second half and keep going for next year.”

Lowry already has his sights on next year.

“Our fans show up and they support us regardless of how we’re doing and we’re going to do everything we can going into the summer and coming into training camp next year to not have this disappointment again at the end of the season,” he said.