The Winnipeg Jets won’t be hoisting the Stanley Cup this season but they’ve earned something far more difficult to obtain: the admiration of Mike O’Shea.
The Blue Bombers’ two-time Grey Cup-winning head coach took time from his regular training camp press conference on Sunday to praise the local NHL team for how they handled themselves during difficult circumstances the night prior.
“As a fan watching that unfold and seeing that massive display of courage and leadership from that group, it’s something we can all learn from,” O’Shea told reporters. “A hell of an entertaining season. Hate to see it end that way. But just that specific game last night, courage and leadership, gotta learn from it.”
The Jets were eliminated from the playoffs on Saturday night following a 2-1 overtime loss in Game 6 of their second-round series to the Dallas Stars. The game generated international headlines after star centre Mark Scheifele elected to play despite learning of the death of his father, Brad, that morning.
Teammates rallied around the Kitchener, Ont. native and he responded accordingly, scoring the game’s opening goal. However, Scheifele was also the man in the penalty box during the Stars’ game-winning powerplay, as he was called for tripping late in regulation while desperately trying to stop a partial breakaway.
“It is a sad thing, and we are so media involved, we are all abreast of the situation and it is terrible,” O’Shea said of Scheifele’s personal loss.
“That is the courage piece. I think you would find throughout high-level sport that all players are going to play, but what we can never understand is how difficult it is. They are all going to make that decision, it is just so very difficult to figure out how to get through it at the level you want to get through it. Once again, it was something we can watch, admire and learn from.”
Following the deciding goal, Jets captain Adam Lowry skated directly to the penalty box to give his support to Scheifele before escorting him to the rest of the team, where he was met by several emotional embraces. That action spoke volumes to O’Shea.
“I’ve been admiring Lowry’s captaincy from afar for a while now. It’s been awesome watching him and how he’s led,” he remarked. “You listen to him speak and the way he plays the game and then just last night… it’s pretty powerful.”
The Jets won the Presidents’ Trophy as the best regular-season team in the NHL during the 2024/25 season, compiling a 56-24-4 record for a total of 116 points. They knocked off the St. Louis Blues in the opening round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs, before coming up short against Dallas. The franchise has never won a Stanley Cup or appeared in the Finals, advancing to the Western Conference Finals just once since returning to the Manitoba capital in 2011
Just two Canadian teams remain alive in the NHL playoffs. The Edmonton Oilers have already booked their ticket to the Western Conference Finals, while the Toronto Maple Leafs face off against the Florida Panthers in a must-win Game 7 at 7:30 p.m. EST on Sunday to advance to the Eastern Conference Finals. O’Shea, a lifelong hockey fan, was invited on the Leafs’ mentors trip in January and got to spend a week travelling with the team.
The post Bombers’ Mike O’Shea praises Winnipeg Jets’ ‘courage and leadership’ following NHL playoff elimination, Mark Scheifele tragedy appeared first on 3DownNation.
